Mew Academy
by Lass Cherrie
Summary: ON HIATUS. / She's a normal girl, living a normal life, until she is summoned to the prestigious 'Mew Academy'. Packing her life into a duffel bag, she travels to Tokyo, unaware of all that awaits her. Wacky kids. Crazy classes. Heroism. Love. High school, ne?
1. A1,P1,S1: An Introduction

**Hey fellow fan-fiction-ers/authors/readers/lovers of Tokyo Mew Mew!**

**I am SO unbelievably sorry progress on this story has been so tedious and frustratingly boring! I'd give you all a long list of excuses that quite reasonably justify my lateness with the start of Mew Academy, but that'd just waste all your time, and bore you all to death. I'm pretty sure you guys are more interested in reading the ACTUAL fic rather than my author's notes. Haha!**

**But - here we are. Finally. Right now, chapter one isn't even FINISHED; I've had to cut it into sections (that's how damn long it got!), starting with this one! 'Chapter One' itself is sitting at about 38 pages at the moment (grin). Just too long for one chappie. He he he...**

**To be honest, I'm not sure if I like how this came out. It was written and re-written several times. This is the final, revised version, which I would have probably re-done if I didn't take myself on a guilt-trip for making you guys wait so long. I don't think you will all like it (nervous smile), but I've done my best.**

**So, sit back, relax, and enjoy the beginning of what is undoubtedly the biggest story I will EVER write (until I write something bigger than it, duh!). Here it is, the beginning of the ginormous project more affectionately referred to as: Mew Academy.**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I own Mew Academy, and our main heroine.**

**Dedications...**

**Story for Mew-Cuxie. Chapter for Kitty Kat K.O. I think a lot of this story will be for her. (xoxo)**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE ONE

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Clickey-clack... Clickety-clack... Clickety-clack...

A pair of chocolate brown eyes stared wistfully through the thick glass pane of the large window, watching the rolling green hills and quaint farmhouses flashing past. They locked onto a windmill, its wooden petals rotating slowly as it churned the grain stores inside the barrel underneath the tall legs of steel, reminding her of the life she was leaving. The life she had grown up in. The quiet, laid back, easy going, calm life she was used to.

She was a small girl, curled up in a ball on the seat with her knees tucked up under her chin, encased by her thin arms. Her long, shining auburn hair flopped over her shoulders in two thin pigtails, tied loosely at her neck by cheap, sparkling pink ribbons. A sigh escaped from between her dainty lips, the corners of which curled up a little when she smiled.

Her chocolate eyes glanced once around the sparse carriage and fixed themselves for a moment on the linoleum floor, dotted occasionally with blackened splodges of old chewing gum, or marks from the rubber on the base of peoples' shoes. Apart from her, there was an old man with thick glasses and a raincoat reading the newspaper down the other end, and two gothic teenagers – presumably a couple – sitting in the middle with i-pod headphones in their ears.

Deciding the exterior of the train was more interesting than the interior, and would probably have more of a chance of distracting her from dreading the upcoming few hours, she flickered her gaze towards a paddock of sheep as they passed, from between long, naturally curled lashes. The late morning sun shone down from the parted white clouds, which dotted the periwinkle-blue sky like... well, clouds against a blue sky. Its magnified rays warmed the cheek that rested against the window, and she winced when it hit her eyes.

Naturally, the weather today had to be perfect to mock her miserable mood.

Succumbing to her love of warmth and sunlight, the auburn haired girl let her eyes slowly close, enjoying the tingling feeling of the rays against her pale skin, and her let thoughts return to her home – to the large barn and stacked hay bales. To the smell of horses and bleating of sheep, and the constant trilling and warbling of the various species of birds that nested on the property. In her mind, she walked around the side of the brick house, past the tin water tank propped above the house on wooden stilts, climbed the rickety old fence that separated the yard from the paddocks, and ran between the neat aisles of corn, ducking every now and then to avoid being hit by a low-hanging cob. Over the rustling of the tall stalks and broad leaves in the wind, the sound of the sheep dogs barking as they chased wild rabbits, and the chuckling of the tractor in another paddock, there was the constant trickling of the river that defined the edge of the property and marked the beginning of the forest.

She was suddenly standing beside the crystal, dark water, watching it bubble over rocks and through tree roots. She bent down and picked up a smooth stone from the shallows, the coldness fresh against her fingers, and ran a thumb across its surface, staring around at the mossy logs and lush greenness of the environment. And enjoying the stillness. She lobbed the stone lightly and it plopped, breaking the shining surface and sinking quickly to the bottom, the water resuming its quiet rippling almost instantaneously.

Someone called her name. She turned around, and was suddenly standing at the edge of the paddock beside the corn field. Her eyes quickly found her father – it had been him calling her – sitting on the tractor in the far corner. He was driving towards her, waving one arm and shouting something. But she couldn't understand what it was. She started to climb the fence, but noticed something to her left. Her grandfather, in his signature denim overalls and green checked shirt was standing, waving to her father with his straw hat in one hand, calling back to him. Now she understood. Her father had been shouting to her grandfather, not her.

Her grandfather began to walk towards the tractor, which was still coming. Her father waved again, this time to _her_, and she jumped the fence, landing in the ankle-deep yellow-green grass of the paddock.

"Wait a moment, dear."

Her mother was beside her, her red-brown hair loose in its loopy bun. A few strands blew askew in the breeze. She was holding a silver pail of milk in one gloved hand. She was a beautiful, simple woman, fond of plants and animals, and the countryside. The auburn haired girl watched her put the pail down, and gazed at it as her mother walked away, following her grandfather towards the tractor, which was _still _coming. She looked up when she heard her father shouting again. The tractor had become a giant truck, and it had no breaks. And it was driving straight towards her family. Her grandfather smiled at her mother as they walked, chattering pleasantly to each other, both unaware of the danger speeding towards them. Fear stabbed at her heart. She tried to open her mouth, to warn them of the speeding truck, but she couldn't. Her lips were sealed together with her grandmother's home-made honey – it was like glue. She could taste it's sweetness on her tongue.

The truck blasted its horn once, loudly. The sound blared, breaking the peacefulness of the farm, and she turned her gaze to the greying heavens. No, it wasn't grey – it was black. Pitch black night, and cold. Rain drizzled from the sky, pattering against her freezing cheeks. She was shivering, but not from cold. That truck was still coming, its headlights like monster eyes. Her father was shouting from behind the large window, waving to get the attention of a car a few hundred metres in front of it. Inside the car sat her father, mother and grandfather, talking excitedly about something. They couldn't see the truck. But she could. She ran towards the car, yelling, throwing her arms over her head, like her father in the truck. Nothing could get their attention.

A car blasted its horn as it flashed past her, joined by the angry cries of other cars as they avoided colliding with her as she jogged up the black road. The rain lashed her face violently, drenching her to the bone. All she felt was cold. Cold and fear. The truck was screaming as the driver – female now, she noted – tried desperately to make the broken brakes work. It mixed with the sounds of the tyres of other cars spinning against the wet asphalt and her shuddering breaths in the air.

Her father in the car drove comfortably, looking ahead. But he couldn't see the truck, or the girl with the strangely familiar posture. She didn't know why. Perhaps he was ignoring her. But suddenly, the truck was upon the car. She watched from afar, unable to run any closer, despite her efforts, as the enormous black beast slammed head on into the little silver sedan in a blaze of glaring lights, screeching brakes and lashing rain. Her stomach heaved as the headlights of the family car lit up the thin face of the auburn-haired truck driver, who was pale with dread. She watched herself in a kind of sickened fascination, almost feeling the pain of the collision in her own bones, the horrid crashing explosion drowning out her screams...

Her eyes flashed open wildly. She was breathing quickly, her chest rising as her heart thudded loudly. She sat up straighter in her seat, the sounds of normality entering her momentary panic. She was not on the farm. She was not in a truck. She hadn't just killed her family. The consistent clickety-clack of the train against the tracks broke the silence of the carriage. The sky outside the window was an orange colour, the golden sun filtering through weakly, shadowed by the clouds as it began its descent. Its rays weren't warm any more, and her cheek was cold where it had pressed against the glass. Her eyes were glossy with the tears that had threatened to spill as she slept. She sniffed a little, hugging herself for comfort. Her layered-brown fringe fell across one watery eye, shading it as she cast them towards her tattered shoes. She still felt sick from the dream. She'd almost slept the entire trip away.

The old man with the newspaper was gone. So were the two teenagers. Now there was a middle aged woman in a red coat with a magazine, and a boy who could've been a university student, writing on a clipboard and reading some loose sheets. In the corner where the old man had been was a pregnant woman with a three-year-old kneeling on the seat beside her, face pressed against the window, pointing at something and babbling away in a high pitched voice.

The girl turned her own gaze to the window beside her, and was surprised to see a wooden fence, behind which were many houses, shadowed by the late afternoon sun, their roofs a sea of multi-coloured tiles. She wondered where she was, her mind distracted for a moment from her horrid dream, and she leaned closer to the window, peering towards the front of the train. In the distance, just visible, were the tall, glassy, straight towers of many buildings, reaching into the heavens. Stark against the urban suburbs they were now passing, the skyscrapers loomed, causing her stomach to knot a little. They were possibly half an hour away. Half an hour away from her new life.

She clasped her hands and took a deep breath, staring down at the enormous red strawberry on the front of her favourite pink sweater. Her thin fingers absently ran themselves through one pigtail, one of her nervous habits. She stood up, pulling up the waistband of her comfortably tight jeans, her legs aching and tingling as they stretched, not used to this sudden requirement of movement. Her knees felt rusty – she'd been sitting in the same position for – she checked the old Mickey Mouse watch around her wrist – six hours. Reaching up, she pulled down the tattered, grey duffel bag from its compartment above her head, plopping back down on the seat.

As the minutes ticked by, becoming twenty, fifteen, thirteen, nine, six, four, until their due arrival, she nervously zipped and unzipped her bag, her fingers shaking a little, those tall buildings growing ever larger as she sped ever closer.

What was she supposed to do when she arrived? Where would she go once she'd gotten off at the station? Would someone be waiting to meet her? Would she have to find her own way to the campus? Was she supposed to catch a bus there? Heck, she didn't even know where it was, or what it looked like!

She unzipped her bag with finality, and fished around in her belongings for a folded piece of paper. Digging it out from the very bottom, she unfolded it and read over – possibly for the thousandth time – the letter she'd been sent a few months before. Gosh, that felt like so long ago now – she could remember sitting at the kitchen table with her mother, both of them wondering what the letter meant, how they knew who she was and where she was, and what she would have to do after receiving it. Well, she knew now. Almost. She was about to find out. She glanced out the window, stomach churning as her chocolate eyes fixed themselves on the first thing they saw – an enormous, multi-storeyed-building, towering high above her in the sky, one of many like it looming in the city. She hadn't even realised how close they were! As she craned her neck to get a better look, the train shot into a tunnel and the city was hidden from view.

Her eyes skimmed the words on the page, seeing them but not taking them in. She subconsciously re-read the letter a dozen times until a modern voice suddenly spoke from a speaker in the roof.

"Now approaching... Tokyo Central."

And with a whining noise, the train began to slow down, finally coming to a screeching stop beside an enormous, busy platform bustling with people. The bottom of her stomach fell away as the long metal beast-like invention relaxed with a hissing noise. The doors slid open automatically and she sat dead still, stunned that she was actually there.

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**So, there's the start! Just warning you: these chapters will be somewhat disjointed, as I had to cut them in random places, so the story might not flow as well as For Lack of a Better Word. They're all of various length too, so don't go looking for a pattern in this story. There won't be one. Trust me (lol). I believe, in this sense, some people will be a bit disappointed with this.**

**Like the way I set it out? (proud smile). We're about to start Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing in Literature, so I thought I'd get into the whole Shakespearean thing. All my chapters will be set out like this. It adds a little excitement to the layout, ne? **

**I just realised, the main character's name is not mentioned once in this chapter! O.O HAHAHA! Oh well, guess you'll all find out more about her later! XP**

**Thankyou SOOO much for reading and for your patience! I am truly grateful that I only recieved two emails of annoyance, lecturing me. He he he...**

**Much love, until scene two!**

**Cherrie-Sakura**

**xoxo**

**(review button's just a click away...)**


	2. A1,P1,S2: Arrival

**Hey readers, friends, acquaintances and strangers!**

**I'm sorry for the wait for this story. Part Two is finally here - take your time to enjoy it when you read. Haha.**

**ALRIGHT; important note! Thankyou everybody who participated in the POLL I had up on my profile for the possible colour of the Mew Academy uniform. The winning result, as I'm sure you all know, was NAVY, ICE BLUE and WHITE. I'll admit now - I was torn between that and the pink version. I was all set to go with the navy uniform, but, luckily, I stopped and thought to myself:**

**_WHAT WOULD SHIROGANE HAVE THEM WEAR?_**

**And that's when I realised, the pink uniform was really the right choice. It made more sense, with the campus design, the history of bright colours in Cafe Mew Mew and it's uniforms, and with Shirogane's strange tendency to make everything pink. So, I'm sorry, folks, if you're disappointed that the winning choice ISN'T the resulting uniform. Thanks for taking the time to have a say - it was much appreciated!**

**So, this has just been proof-read and edited for the last time; thankfully - I found a few mistakes that I would've been ashamed to publish on the site. I'm still a little rusty with the whole honorific thing. I'm usually pretty good, but I had a bit of difficulty putting honorifics on the first name of one of the characters when she was being spoken to by an upperclassman. In the end I just settled for simple first name a lot of the time. But my usage of honorifics improves with each progressive chapter, I think. So if you spot any incorrect honorifics in this chapter, let me know and I'll make amends in the future.**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew, obviously. I do, however, place full copyright on our first few heroines.**

**Dedications...**

**Story for MewCuxie. Chapter for MikaTheCatHanyou. Thanks for the pestering, CUTIE (haha I won't call you that again, I promise) xxox**

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ACT ONE - SCENE ONE - PART TWO

**"Arrival"**

"Hey, Yume, where is this girl?"

The impatient voice belonged to a fifteen-year-old girl who was leaning against the brick wall by the entrance inside the enormous station, examining a dent in the polish on one of her neatly shaped, colourfully decorated nails. Her dark brown eyes flashed with annoyance and she sighed.

She was a slender girl, perhaps a few centimetres taller than our previously mentioned heroine, with thin wrists and legs, peachy-pale skin, and a waist void of the soft, floppy skin known to most adolescent girls as 'fat'. She'd tied her short, dark blueberry-blue hair up in two pigtails, which stuck out from the top of her head in little spiky clumps. A few strands – layered to sit across her left eye – fell across her face as she let her head drop towards her chest, an action that gave the people around her the impression that she was so bored she'd gone to sleep.

"Where _is _she?" she groaned, glancing at a sparkling silver watch on her wrist. "She was supposed to be here ten minutes ago!"

"I don't have the answers, Nakamura-san," a mature voice replied. The blue-haired girl glanced over to a modern silver bench, on which perched a tall girl with incredible posture. She was an elegant creature – slender and beautiful. Her long, lilac-coloured hair tumbled down her back in large, loose waves, shining silvery in the late afternoon light. Her unnervingly silver eyes were calmly watching the crowds of busy Tokyo people bustling around the station. Her hands were clasped together, folded neatly in her lap while she waited.

"I don't know how you can be so patient, Yume-san."

Blue-haired Nakamura Sachi pushed off from the brick wall and drifted over to the seat, tucking the pleated material of the short cherry pink, rose pink and black tartan skirt under her backside before she sat down. She fidgeted with the sleeves of the fitted black blazer she was wearing; it had become uncomfortable. She'd worn it all day and was fast getting sick of it.

"You're going to pull a seam."

"Sorry, Yume-san," Sachi replied quickly, sagging a little in her seat and obediently ceasing her tugging on the sleeves. Yume looked at her quietly with wise silvery eyes, drinking in the 'adorable' uniform of the high school they attended, Mew Academy. Under the blazer, the blue-haired girl wore a jet black woollen vest, crested with the school logo, an elegant, silver cursive 'M', behind which was a horizontal strand of DNA. Peeking out from under the blazer's folded collar was the rose pink collar of the long-sleeved, button up shirt. Last, but certainly not least (for it was the part of the uniform that grabbed the attention the moment one set eyes upon it), was the cherry-pink cloth, tied in an enormous, girlish bow at the neck, the component of the Japanese school uniform that set them apart from other countries' school uniforms.

Sachi began playing with the elastic of her over-the-knee-high black socks, fixing the tops so they were perfectly straight on her legs.

"Just wait, Nakamura-san. Be a little patient."

"I don't _have _any patience!" Sachi cried in exasperation, resting her elbow on her knees, and propping her chin on her hand. She heaved another sigh.

"Why didn't they send someone else to come find the new girl?" she complained, watching a man in a suit drop the cell phone he was talking on and stoop to pick it up, as he passed by.

"Because you're her host student," Yume replied simply. "Its part of the responsibility you agreed to when you signed up for the job."

"I didn't think showing a new kid around the school for a few weeks included waiting around for hours at the station for them to arrive!" Sachi whined.

"You're not waiting hours," Yume pointed out, voice somewhat dull.

"Okay, I exaggerated a little," Sachi replied, rolling her eyes and leaning back again, until her back hit the steel frame of the bench, and she let her head drop back so she could see out of the glass roof at the puffy grey-white clouds drifting by. She gazed out of the corner of her eye at her older friend; more specifically, at her odd, elf-shaped ears. The blue-haired girl wondered, certainly not for the first time, what it would be like to be of alien descent.

"I think she might be at the platform," Yume said suddenly, calmly.

"Huh? She's where?" Sachi asked, startled out of her thoughts.

"Never mind," Yume replied, a little tiredly.

"Hey!" Sachi cried, a thought suddenly hitting her. "What if she's waiting for us at the platform?!"

Yume sighed deeply, rubbing her eyes with one long-fingered hand.

"Come on," she said, rising elegantly from her seat and drifting away towards the many platforms. Sachi jumped up and glanced at her watch again as she hurried along behind the older girl. If she was correct (which she most probably wasn't, as she had a habit of being hasty with her decisions and not thinking things through properly), they had less than five minutes left until their tram departed. And if they weren't on that tram... Well, she certainly didn't fancy the lecture she'd receive from Shirogane-sensei if they were late back to the school.

"Which platform did her train come in to?" Sachi asked, trotting along behind tall Yume, who moved surprisingly quickly for a girl who took her time getting everywhere.

"I'm not sure."

"Do we check them all?"

"No, Nakamura-san. We check the timetables to see which trains are departing for her hometown," Yume replied, as if it were the most obvious solution, which, in reality, it was.

"Do you know her hometown?" Sachi asked, surprised.

"Yes."

"How?" the younger girl enquired curiously, a slight tinge of suspicion on the edge of her voice.

"Shirogane-sensei entrusted me with her papers. He didn't think giving them to you was such a great idea."

"Why not?" Sachi demanded, a little hurt.

"Have you found your pencil case yet?" Yume asked, seemingly changing the subject. The question, however, was completely justified and very much relevant to the conversation.

"Uh... no?"

"Or your math textbook? Or your scarf? Or Kinomoto-san's CD? Or Komosaki-san's left shoe?"

"Uh..." Sachi blushed, seeing the light. "Okay, that makes sense now."

"How _did_ you manage to lose Kasai-san's _left _shoe, and still have the right one? How do you _lose _a shoe? You were wearing it!" Yume said, a little disdainfully, honestly unable to see the possibility of losing something so... generally _difficult_ to lose.

"I don't know!" Sachi cried, jogging now, as the elfin-like girl had increased her strides. "One minute it was on my foot, the next it had disappeared!"

"Unfathomable," Yume muttered, silver eyes focused on the large board of timetables. They scanned the list quickly, resting finally on the words she was looking for. 'Yamaguchi', and 'twelve'.

"Wow, she lives right at the bottom of Honshu!" Sachi commented, peering closely at the words. "It must've taken her hours to get here!"

"Yes, considering she doesn't even live in Yamaguchi. It's just the closest large town to her village," Yume replied, glancing down at the piece of paper in her slender hand to make sure she had the right town name. Sachi peeked over her shoulder at the small photograph in the top right hand corner. A girl with long auburn hair was sitting on a bench in what looked like a park, with a pink ice cream, completely unaware that she was being photographed. Sachi wondered how recent the photo was. She had little time to ponder, though, for the next moment Yume had whirled away from the board and was gliding away in the direction of platform twelve.

X

_Where am I supposed to go?_

Standing beside her small case, the girl with the auburn pigtails glanced around nervously, hoping someone would magically step out from the crowd of busy people swarming around her and tell her what she was supposed to do.

_Who do I look for? Is anyone even here to find me? Should I go to another part of the station? Oh, I'm so lost – I've never even been here before!_

Warm tears slowly filled her large brown eyes. She hugged her tattered pink duffel bag closer to her body, twisting around a little in her hopelessness, looking for anybody who noticed her standing there. She looked at her watch. She'd been here almost fifteen minutes... She was beginning to lose hope.

_But__… what do I do?_

"Hey – there she is! Kikuchi-san!"

The shout came from somewhere in the enormous sea of business men and women. Hearing her name, the auburn-haired girl perked up immediately, standing on her tip-toes and looking around hopefully. Out from the crowd burst a spunky-looking girl with blue pigtails and a girlish pink and black school uniform. She ran forward, dodging fast-walking pedestrians, and landed, fringe covering part of her face when it had been blown askew, in front of the small, stunned girl.

"Kikuchi Akane?" she asked, dark eyes hopeful. The auburn-haired girl nodded shyly, still a little overwhelmed. The other grinned, scooped up her suitcase in one hand and grabbed her hand, taking off at a run. With a sharp cry, Akane felt her feet leave the ground and she stumbled a little, somehow finding her footing and weaving between fellow travellers as she was dragged through the crowd.

"No time to explain!" the blue-haired girl called over her shoulder. Squeaking as she manoeuvred around elderly people with walking frames, business men with heavy-looking briefcases, and mothers with prams (always a hazard – prams hurt when collided into) Akane felt her heart racing in her chest and the fear of tripping and grazing her knees made her stomach drop away. Her auburn fringe was blown out of her eyes. Then, suddenly, they'd broken out of the crowd, like breaking free of a rip in the ocean, and the strange blue-haired girl let go of her hand, ceasing her mad dash. Panting, Akane used all her strength to keep her knees from collapsing. She glanced, wide-eyed, at the grinning, mischievous face of the blue-haired girl, before noticing the presence of another figure.

She was tall and thin, with chalk white skin, and beautiful, lavender-coloured hair, which fell down her back, long and wavy. Her silver eyes were filled with a kind of wistful serenity, and were currently fixed on the small girl's flushed face. The paleness of them was very unsettling, and she wished she could look away. At the same time, she was so intrigued by the strange eye colour that she was drawn to them like a moth to the light.

"Kikuchi Akane?" the elegant girl asked in a mature voice, and Akane nodded quietly, stunned into a shy silence by the sudden appearance of these interesting characters.

"Excellent. Hold out your hand," the tall girl said, and she did so, no questions asked. To her surprise, so did the blue-haired girl, and, for a moment, she wondered which of them had mistaken who the command was directed at. However, in the next moment, the lavender-haired had taken both their hands and her eyes were closing.

A strange feeling washed over Akane – similar to what she imagined weightlessness to be like, mixed with the horrid feeling one has when their stomach drops on a ride at the theme park. To her horror, the platform around them began to distort, until it was a blur of colour. Then she felt like she was rushing downwards. Or upwards. She couldn't tell. But she was definitely _rushing _somewhere. If she could have exclaimed, she would have, but it all happened so fast that she couldn't make a sound. Couldn't even react.

Before she knew it, the world was materialising once more, and, very suddenly, everything was normal again. No strange distortions, no rushing feeling. Except they weren't standing on the platform anymore. Now they were inside what looked like a train carriage. Still holding hands with the other two, Akane quickly let go, and sank, weak-kneed, into a seat, pale as a sheet, eyes wide as saucers.

"You okay down there?" the blue-haired girl asked jovially. "You're looking a bit pale."

"I... I..." she trailed off. No words could describe how she felt. She was beyond astounded, dumbfounded, shocked, absolutely overwhelmed. She sat in silence, stomach heaving a little, head reeling, mouth opening and closing like a goldfish's.

_What the heck just happened?!_

"We made it," the lavender-haired girl said happily. "I'll get her ticket."

"Hey – Kikuchi-san?"

Akane looked up obediently, somewhat absently. The cheeky girl was watching her, frowning a little with what could have been either confusion or concern. Or possibly both. She sank down beside her on the long, cushioned seat.

"Are you okay? Do you feel sick, or something?" she asked. Akane didn't reply. She wet her lips and swallowed a little before looking up and meeting the girl's dark eyes.

"H-how... How'd she do that?"

"Hmm? Do what?" the other girl seemed genuinely confused.

"Make... make the world change..." it sounded stupid even as it left her lips.

"Make the...? Huh? What are you talking about?"

"We... we were in one place... and then... we – we were in another, and – how did she do it?!" Akane stammered, the words gushing airily from her mouth in her stunned-ness.

"You mean teleport?" the girl asked, taken aback. "Because she's a Cyniclon – duh! Haven't you ever teleported before?"

"N-no..." Akane muttered, feeling dumb, and wondering what on earth a Cyniclon was. The lavender-haired girl returned and held out a small, pink card, shaped like a cherry blossom flower. Taking it with shaking fingers, Akane pocketed it absent-mindedly.

"Thankyou."

With a sharp dinging noise she'd never heard on a train and suspected was a bell, the vehicle began to move. A quiet whirring, whining noise filled out some of the silence, and she twisted to look over her shoulder out the window behind her.

That was when she realised it wasn't a train at all.

"A tram?" she said, surprised, and the blue-haired girl laughed.

"Yeah, this isn't a train," she replied, as the taller girl sank elegantly onto a long bench opposite them.

"She doesn't look so good, Sachi," she commented, nodding towards Akane, who was now examining the interior of the old-fashioned 'street train', which was furnished with pink cushions and had pale pink walls. Every time the tram clattered across the tracks she jumped a little, looking quickly out the window, trying to glimpse the metal path they were following.

"She'd never teleported before. We didn't think of that. Guess it is a bit shocking the first time," Sachi replied, glancing at the auburn-haired girl, who looked a little frightened as the tram wires sparked in the sky above them, showering beads of orange light everywhere. The two girls fell silent, caught up in their thoughts.

"Excuse me?" a small voice asked. They both looked over at the new girl.

"Yes?" Yume replied, waiting.

"I don't mean to be rude, but... Who are you? A-and... What's a 'Cyni-clone'?"

"Whoa! Time out! You don't know what a Cyniclon is?" the blue girl exclaimed, eyes widening. Akane blushed at her ignorance and shook her head shamefully.

"Wait a second, Sachi," the lavender girl said, a little sternly. She turned to Akane. "I'm sorry this is all so disorganised and strange for you. My name is Yume, and this is Nakamura Sachi. We're your dorm-mates."

"And I'm your student host for the next week!" Sachi added proudly, grinning. "I'll take you to all your classes and show you around the school and introduce you to people and help you settle in!"

"Oh..." Akane murmured, nodding a little.

"Do you really not know what a Cyniclon is?" Yume asked curiously, watching her response. Akane shook her head again, blushing redder.

"I'm sorry..."

"No, it's okay," Yume reassured her, swaying as the tram went round a corner. She looked a little surprised, like it was uncommon for people not to know what a Cyniclon was, which, coincidentally, it was. "It's just not very often that we come across someone who hasn't heard of us before."

"Us?" Akane inquired.

"The Cyniclons," Sachi replied. Without another word, Yume turned her head slightly, and, for the first time, Akane noticed the interesting elfin shape of her long, pointed ears. Her stomach squirmed a little.

"Y-you're not... H-human?" she stammered, fear creeping up into her voice, despite her attempts to mask it.

"The Cyniclons are an alien race, Kikuchi-san," Yume explained slowly, smiling a little. "Years ago there was a war between the Humans and our race, but it was resolved, and now many of us live alongside your race in peace. You'll learn all about it in first year History."

"A-aliens?" Akane spluttered, almost choking on the word. Her insides were squirming. It was so difficult to grasp the concept.

"Yes," Yume said simply.

"So... Uh... What exactly... Does that mean?" Akane asked awkwardly.

"Well... they're not that different from us, really," Sachi replied, fiddling with her black socks. "I mean they look a little different, but that's about it, really. And they can teleport. But you've already seen that..."

"We're really very similar, Kikuchi-san," Yume said, smiling a little. "We eat the same food, breathe the same air, walk and run just like you do. We don't need as much sleep, though."

"I've always wondered why that is," Sachi commented thoughtfully. "It doesn't make much sense."

"Don't you pay attention in Biology and Genetic Studies?" Yume asked sternly, frowning. Sachi grinned guiltily. The older alien rolled her silver eyes and turned her gaze to the exterior of the tram window. They were travelling along a busy main street in Tokyo, the road lined by brightly lit shops and billboard sign advertisements. There were people everywhere. The sky above them was a dark purple fading through to burnt orange, dotted with the first appearing sparkling stars.

"So, now that that's cleared up, let's talk about you, Kikuchi-chan!" Sachi said merrily, breaking the silence that had fallen. "I can call you that, right? We're friends now, aren't we?"

"Umm... I guess..." Akane trailed off, not really knowing what else to say. Sachi beamed, the smile lighting up her pixie-like face.

"Great! So, first of all, what's your genetic match?" she asked, dark eyes enthusiastic. Akane felt her brow furrow in confusion, and she frowned a little.

"My... what?"

"Your genetic match. Maybe they call it something else out in the country. Your animal match... the animal your DNA is compatible with," Sachi rephrased.

"I'm not sure I know what you're talking about," Akane said apologetically, cheeks pink with embarrassment. It was Sachi's turn to frown in confusion. Yume cast a curious eye over the small, auburn-haired girl.

"Well, you're a Mew Mew, right?" Sachi asked, cocking her head to one side.

"A... Mew Mew?"

"How else would you get accepted to Mew Academy, silly!" Sachi said, poking her tongue out playfully. Akane didn't smile. Whatever the blue-haired girl was talking about, it was going straight over her head.

"I don't know why I'm coming to this school. I just got a letter and came – no explanations provided," she said quietly. "I have no idea what I'm supposed to do, or where I'm supposed to go... And what's a 'Mew Mew'?"

"Oh. My. Gosh," Sachi gasped, eyes wide, as though she had uttered a curse or something. Akane stared down at her feet, wishing she could sink into the ground. These girls were making her feel stupider and stupider by the minute. She wished she could get back on the train and go home.

"Stop being so dramatic, Nakamura-san," Yume said sternly.

"I'm sorry," Sachi apologised quickly, sincerely. "I've never met anyone who didn't know what a Mew Mew was before. It's a little surprising."

"So imagine how she feels," Yume lectured, turning to Akane . "Don't worry about anything. Shirogane-sensei will have his reasons for inviting you here. Obviously there's something special about you, so don't be frightened."

"Thanks," Akane whispered, not feeling at all grateful, sinking lower into her seat. Why didn't she understand any of what these girls were saying? Was she that dumb? How come there were all these incredible things they were talking about that she'd never even heard of?

Sachi glanced at her, wondering what she could do or say to make the strange girl feel better. She felt guilty for upsetting her. Exchanging a glance with Yume, she decided to change the subject.

"So, our dorm is number seventeen, on the second floor," she said cheerfully. "And there are five other girls besides us. At the Academy they mix the students, so we're in with girls from all different grades. We're the youngest."

"Oh," Akane replied, for lack of anything more interesting to say.

"And there aren't as many subjects at our school as there are at others. We only have –" she counted on her fingers, "– ten classes. Math and Japanese, of course, and Art, Hospitality, P.E., History, English, Biology and Genetic Studies, Practical, and Theory."

"What are –?" Akane started to ask, but Sachi had continued talking over her.

"You'll learn about Practical and Theory when you get to school. And call Biology and Genetic Studies 'Biology' or 'Bio', because everyone else does," she babbled. "But some people call it 'Genetics', too, so that's acceptable as well. The best classes are Hospitality, because Akasaka-sensei is so nice that you get away with not doing your homework, Art, because you never have to do anything, and Practical because it's fun, even though it's hard."

"Oh," Akane said again, but couldn't say anything else, because, again the blue-haired girl had continued speaking, hardly pausing for breath between sentences.

"Now, the hardest subjects are easily Japanese and History. The teachers make you work the most in them, though, come to think of it, Theory's difficult, too. Don't worry about Math – it's a bit of a joke of a class, or English – Midorikawa-sensei is far too shy to tell anyone off, so we pretty much do whatever we want. But she's actually a good teacher, if you want to be taught. Bludge classes are Art and History. Poor Pai-sensei tries so hard to keep our attention, but he loves the subject so much that he kills our love for it," she laughed merrily. Her dark eyes twinkled.

"Whatever you do, don't try and bludge in Bio/Genetics; Shirogane-sensei will kick you out of class, give you detention for a week and make you run five laps of the football field," she added seriously as an afterthought. "So will Fujiwara-sensei, but without the laps."

"Oh," Akane said, shuddering a little in fear. The classes sounded petrifying. She vowed on the spot to never be late, never bludge, and to never forget her homework. Studying sounded like the only way to safely survive the school.

"Nakamura-san, you're scaring her," Yume said calmly, as the tram turned off the main road and headed further into the outskirts.

"Oh – sorry!" Sachi cried quickly, blushing a little. "It's really not that scary – you won't have to worry about a thing."

"Sure..." Akane replied nervously.

"Do you have any questions about... anything?" Sachi asked awkwardly. The auburn haired girl shook her head quietly.

"Okay, well, good – 'cause we're here!"

**Woo! We have character introductions! So tell me, if you haven't already reviewed chapter 2 (I know, I know, it all retarded itself when I deleted the original chapters 1 and 2 and people can't review - trust me; Mika-chan told me ALL about it ;)...) what you think of Sachi and Yume? Which do you prefer? Which do you think will be a more interesting character in the future? **

**Don't worry, those who entered characters, your OC character introductions will be happening very shortly, within the next two chapters, I believe. So sit tight, because it's all about to kick in!**

**Thanks for reading, and waiting patiently for updates. I'll keep them coming ASAP.**

**Love love, until Part Three!**

**Cherrie**

**xxox**

**(review button's right there!)**


	3. A1,P1,S3: Dormitory

**Hey, dudettes!**

**Look what I found! Yes - Mew Academy has finally reappeared; I'd saved a copy of the ENTIRE thing to my school hard drive; thank the LORD!**

**Sorry for the gi-normous wait on this story, guys. Thanks so much for being patient.**

**Here's a shout out to my mates, who I haven't been able to keep in contact with much lately: Kitty Kat K.O, Mika (who I believe has now changed her penname!), Kish's Kittie, DolphinSweetheart16, Kin (insert random numbers here), BerryNaeNae, and my friend, tootsie.daul28. HI GUYS!! :)**

**Without further ado, scene three! Read on, MacDuff! **

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I do own Akane :)**

**Dedications:**

**Story for MewCuxie. Chapter for Mika, whatever her penname may be! xx**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE THREE

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After a thirteen minute tram trip through the streets of Tokyo, the old-fashioned vehicle had reached the edge of the campus grounds. Akane peered out the window at a square billboard with a photograph of some boys and girls in funny costumes, and some lame phrases advertising the school. All schools seemed to have them, the shy girl mused to herself.

The tram passed through between two high brick walls which acted as fences, separating the grounds from the rest of the large city. She strained her eyes to see what the campus looked like, but all she could make it out in the darkness were the black shapes of big structures out in front of them, and a tree here and there. The conversation between the girls died as they approached the school.

Finally, with a shuddering squeal of brakes, the tram came to a rest at the station, which was conveniently placed in the middle of two enormous buildings, and the doors slid open, squeaking a little. Yume rose gracefully from her seat and drifted onto the platform, Sachi skipping along behind her, and, behind _her_, Akane, carrying her little case. The doors squeaked shut again and the tram – vivid pink in colouring, she noticed – crawled away down the tracks, in the opposite direction to which they had come.

"The tracks keep going," Sachi explained, following Akane's gaze. "There are exits at either end of the school. It's a one-way track. The trams come every ten minutes."

Akane turned to the blue-haired girl, and nodded her understanding. Sachi smiled.

"So, this is the very middle of the school," she explained. Akane turned around and tilted her head back to look up at the buildings around her. Looming above them was what greatly resembled an enormous castle – and she would have been impressed enough without the fact that every single brick stacked in the structure was musk pink.

"Is that... supposed to be... ?"

"A castle? Yes. Don't ask why, though. No one really understands Shirogane-sensei's reasoning, or motivation for that," Sachi said, frowning a little. She shrugged. "He designed the whole thing himself. There are actually four castles; this one's joined in the middle, and also joined to the building behind us. Look up."

Akane did so, and found herself staring up at the white bottom of a bridge-like walkway, which reached from the wall of the pink building, over the tram station to the wall of an almost identical mint-green building on the other side of the tracks.

"The pink castle is the female accommodation. See that bit – the line in the bricks? – that's where it becomes the boys' accommodation. One half of the building's pink, the other half's blue," Sachi said. "There's a perfect line of purple where it changes."

"Come on," Yume called over her slender shoulder, clearly bored with the chit-chat. "We're going to be late."

"The green building is where our classes are held," Sachi explained quickly in a quiet chattering voice, as they hurried along behind the lavender-haired alien, away from the platform and down a brick path to the entrance to the pink castle. "That bridge is pretty much just a corridor; it's closed over and everything. No-one's ever fallen, which is good, considering it's the only way to get across to the building."

Akane glanced back over her shoulder as they walked through the sliding glass doors at the white bridge. Blue-haired Sachi yanked on her sleeve, however, and she turned around quickly, following the chattery girl into the foyer of the castle.

"There's not really much to see in here," Sachi said over her shoulder, to which Akane agreed. The foyer was really quite bare, with several pot plants, a main desk for the receptionist, a few doors (presumably leading to offices), and some comfy-looking pink sofas.

"Umm... Excuse me?" Akane asked quietly. Sachi looked at her expectantly.

"Why is everything... _pink_?"

"You don't like pink?" Sachi asked, confused. She glanced pointedly at the auburn-haired girl's pink sweater. Akane blushed a little and shook her head.

"No... It's just... everything's pink..." she trailed off. Sachi smiled.

"Yes, there's a lot of pink at this school. Oh, tomorrow morning, make sure you remind me to take you to the uniform shop, or you'll go the entire week without one, and then I'll get in trouble," she said, walking over to where Yume was waiting patiently beside the old-fashioned elevator. To Akane, it looked like one of the elevators the bathhouses used to have; the doors were sliding bamboo with a painted design of cherry-blossoms across it. As she watched, Yume rang the pull-cord bell which hung off the wall, and they could hear the lift squeaking as it was pulleyed down from somewhere above them. With a little grinding sound, the elevator came to a stop and the bamboo door slid open to reveal a surprisingly modern interior.

"Yeah, don't be fooled by the old-school doors we've got going here," Sachi said, noticing her confused expression as she carried her case inside. The door slid shut again and Yume pressed the button for the second floor. "It's just for effect. The lifts are like any other modern lifts."

"I think if it weren't for the safety hazard with the older designed elevators, Shirogane-sensei would have made them bathhouse-style," Yume replied lightly. "But of course, the safety of his students would have to come first, and those older models aren't exactly the safest. They had a tendency to either stop working or break down halfway between floors for no apparent reason."

Akane shuddered a little as the lift began to move upwards. She had no desire to be stranded in a stuck elevator – her slight fear of heights made it difficult for her to feel comfortable in elevators anyway.

It was a very short journey, only a few seconds, in fact, before the lift was dinging and the doors were sliding open again, to reveal a long, polished-wooden-floorboard corridor, flanked on either side by identical doors with different brass numbers. Every now and then, on the left wall, there was a window, out of which could be seen the starry sky and not much else.

"Beware," Sachi warned over her shoulder as they walked along the corridor, "some of these girls may be a little rowdy. They really shoved a whole bunch of very different girls in one dorm – there are a lot of different personalities in there."

"Oh," Akane said, feeling like a stuck record. It had been her response to almost everything the blue-haired girl had said all evening.

"Now, our dorm is number seventeen, remember? Don't forget that. Well," Sachi added, thinking about it, "I guess you actually can, because I'll be with you most of the time anyway, so if you forget, I'll just remind you."

She beamed happily and the three girls simultaneously began to slow. Yume took out a key from her blazer pocket and it glinted in the lights shining from the corridor roof. They came to a stop outside the door marked with the numbers one and seven, from behind which could be heard some shouting. Sachi exchanged a somewhat worried glance with Yume as the older alien slid the key into the lock.

"Wonder what the problem is tonight," she muttered, taking a deep breath and pushing open the door.

A pillow collided with her face.

There were several screams and then total silence as the females inside the room realised what had just happened. Akane could almost hear their horror, even though none of them were making any noise. Yume put her hands on her hips. Sachi peeked out from around her figure, standing intimidatingly in the doorway.

"Who threw that?!" she demanded, eyes both twinkling mischievously and casting warning glances around the room.

"Kiseki-chan did!"

"Did not! It was Sazuki-chan!"

"Hey – don't look at me! It was totally Rin-sama!"

"Oh, get real, Sazuki. As if Inoue-sama would _ever_ throw a pillow!"

The protests and accusations started all at once, the voices in the room fighting over each other, growing progressively louder with each word. Akane waited patiently in the hallway, wondering how many people she could count and reaching an estimation of 'a fair few'.

"Girls – girls!" Yume called sternly. "Seriously, we're gone a mere hour and you wreck havoc! You can't be trusted even for a tiny moment! Where's Madar-san?"

"Al-Farouk-sama went to get the others from the hot spring," a girly voice replied eagerly. She sounded young. Yume turned around in the doorway.

"You can go in now. It's safe," she explained, walking in herself, Sachi trailing behind. Eager to move out of the corridor (the doors of nearby rooms had opened ajar and girls had peeked out curiously to see what all the racket was. It was very intimidating, as the case by her feet sort of gave away the fact that she was new, so, naturally, they all ogled her like she was a creature at the zoo) Akane hurried after them, heart beating quickly with nerves at what was inside.

When she turned around from closing the door quietly, there were a number of faces looking at her. The 'dorm' was really one large, square room with furniture arranged to make it homely. There was one sliding door, off to her left, which was currently open, revealing a small room with an equally small kitchen. Directly opposite the sliding door was another sliding door, also open, behind which she could glimpse a square room almost identical to the one she had just walked into. The kitchen seemed to be a space joining both.

A small girl sat atop one of the several bunk beds lined in rows against the left wall, her legs swinging off the edge, a fat pillow hugged in her arms, her wild, strawberry blonde ringlets bouncing against her back. Her brilliant emerald green eyes sparkled with enthusiasm.

Standing at the base of the bunk bed, a pillow dangling (completely forgotten) from her fingertips, was a taller girl with straight brown hair that fell to her elbows, and curious hazel-green eyes, dressed in an all-purple pyjama set patterned with cute butterflies.

Another girl, her honey-brown hair pinned carelessly at the back of her head in a messy bun, with a somewhat odd and very random white nurses' cap perched atop her head, the dominant cross on it a pretty shade of violet, was standing on the striped cushion of one of the two couches, clearly about to launch a cushion at the brown-haired girl. She was grinning all over her heart-shaped face, the amusement reflected in her strange purple-blue eyes.

A fourth girl was curled up on the couch, her nose buried in a novel, and hadn't even looked up, her white hair falling across her face. Strangely, the flicked-out tips of silky white were a contrasting jet black. Akane wondered if she dyed them to be that way.

The silence echoed for a moment around the dormitory. Then voices erupted into chatter in one explosive moment.

"Is this the new girl?"

"She's cute!"

"What's her DNA match?"

"What's her fighting style?"

"Huzzah!"

"Where'd she come from?"

"Why wasn't she here at the start of term?"

"Girls!" Yume snapped, somehow louder than all three put together. They immediately fell silent, eagerness crushed by her calm authority. They looked from the lavender-haired alien, to Akane standing awkwardly with her case, blushing furiously, and back again. Yume sighed a little, a tick seemingly forming on her brow.

"I'm going to go and find Madar-san and the others," she said. "If I so much as hear a _peep _from this room when I return, I'll report everyone to help the janitor with cleaning duty for an entire week. Am I clear?"

"Yes Yume-san," the darker-haired girl replied gloomily. The silvery-eyed alien glanced around the room with one sweeping gaze, before speaking again.

"It's almost curfew. The people next door are probably trying to study. Keep it down, for once," she said. Then she turned to Sachi, who had been surprisingly quiet the entire time. "I'm also going to tell Shirogane-sensei that we've got Nakamura-san. Don't forget, Sachi."

"I won't," the blue-haired girl promised merrily.

"Now, all of you, look after her for a minute. Inoue-san?" Yume asked, and the girl curled up on the couch looked up upon hearing her name. Her round glasses flashed, reflecting the light from the roof, and her storm grey eyes located the tall alien with a definite impassiveness.

"Yes?"

"You're one of the leaders. Why didn't you keep them quiet?" Yume asked, frowning a little. The white-and-black-haired girl frowned in response.

"They don't listen to me," she said simply, her voice deep with maturity.

"Well _make _them listen to you," Yume replied, a little frustrated. The tall girl on the couch shrugged simply.

"I'm a pacifist," she said simply.

"Asserting authority doesn't necessarily require violence, Inoue-san," Yume sighed. The other didn't reply, simply shrugged again and returned to her novel. Yume rolled her eyes.

"Be good. All of you," she commanded sternly. Akane felt her skin prickling a little. There was something about the silver-eyed alien that practically spelt out 'do not cross'; like an aura around her. She was undoubtedly an intimidating character; however, she was also one to be admired. Obviously she was highly respected by the others.

While Akane's chocolate eyes watched, the lavender-haired girl shut her own eyes and promptly disappeared. The shy girl jumped a little – surprised, even though she'd witnessed such an action before. The silence had resided barely two seconds before everyone started talking again – though at a calmer pace, Akane noted.

"I can't believe you guys had a pillow fight without me!" Sachi exclaimed, hands on hips, shooting accusing looks at the three girls before her. The girl on the bunk flashed a wide grin.

"Sorry Sachi-chan, but it was the perfect opportunity!" she explained. "With Yume-san and Al-Farouk-sama gone, and this one –" she jerked her thumb at the girl on the couch "– we couldn't resist!"

"Oh, whatever," Sachi snapped playfully. "Who won?"

"Me!" the three girls chorused, and laughed. The honey-brown-haired girl turned her purplish eyes to Akane, who was still standing awkwardly beside the door, clutching her small case nervously.

"So you're the new girl," she commented, not at all unkindly.

"Yes!" Sachi replied, as if reminded. "Girls, this is Kikuchi Akane. These –" she gestured to the other girls "– are my friends, and your fellow students and dorm-mates: Sato Kiseki, Kinomoto Sazuki, and Suzuki Umeko."

"How goes it?" Kiseki – the girl with the strawberry-blonde ringlets – asked, making absolutely no sense to the poor girl.

"Uh..."

"What's your genetic match?" the honey-brown-haired girl with the nurses' cap, Umeko, asked interestedly.

"Are you a mammal? I bet you're a mammal – you look like a mouse, to me!" the third girl, Sazuki, added eagerly.

"A... mouse?" Akane asked quietly, eyes wide, not a hope of understanding what they were going on about. Was that an insult or a compliment? Strangely, the bubbly blue-haired girl looked slightly uncomfortable. She was shifting her weight from one foot to the other.

"Umeko-chan, could you take her case?" she asked, her voice a little louder than she'd intended, which earned her strange looks from all four girls – Akane included. Sachi cleared her throat dramatically, her cheeks flushed pink.

"Sure," purple-blue-eyed Umeko replied obligingly, reaching for it. "Wow, this is a tiny case. Where are the other ones?"

"I'm sorry, what do you mean?" Akane asked quietly.

"Your other cases – the ones with all your clothes," Sazuki explained. "That's a cute carry-on bag, though. It's like a miniature suitcase!"

"I only have one bag," Akane replied in barely more than a whisper, her eyes cast to the floor when she saw their bewildered expressions. She held her duffel bag closer to her.

"You mean... All your clothes are in _that _tiny bag?" Kiseki asked in disbelief. Her emerald eyes almost overflowed with surprise. The auburn-haired girl blushed and nodded a little. There was an uncomfortable silence.

"Uh... just dump it on that bunk over there – the bottom one," Sachi instructed Umeko, sweat dropping. She turned to Akane, who was wishing she could sink through the floor again, to escape the odd looks she was receiving from the three girls she'd just met.

"Now, you've got an appointment with Shirogane-sensei in about ten minutes," the spunky, blue-haired girl explained. "If you want, we can get going now, or wait a few minutes... It's up to you."

"I... I..." But what it was she was going to say, they wouldn't find out, for the next moment the door had burst open and several people had appeared.

The first was a very short, very angry-looking girl with tight, jet black ringlets streaked lime green, that tumbled down her back, some held back by a velvet bow on a clasp at the back of her head. Her deep blue eyes were flashing with annoyance, and they locked onto Sachi. She stormed right in, seemingly growing ironically with anger, despite her shortness.

"Nakamura-_san_!" she barked, emphasizing the respectful honorific with sarcasm. Sachi seemed to deflate and tense at the same time.

"Here we go," she sighed under her breath, and only Akane caught it.

"You ratted on us, didn't you!" the angry little girl demanded accusingly, folding her arms across her chest. Sachi frowned.

"Hello to you, too, Tanaka," she replied sarcastically. "And no, I didn't. Though, what I'd rat on _you _about I struggle to see. You're such a goody-goody that there _isn't _anything to rat on... Though, I would if there was."

"Oh? Better a goody-goody than a student with a bad rep! What's with the lack of honorific, _Nakamura_?" the other girl asked, one eyebrow twitching a little with aggravation.

"Well, as far as respect goes, you don't have any. And clearly I'm not below your standards, or did your tiny brain simply _forget _the honorific on _my_ name?" Sachi replied deftly. Those deep blue eyes flashed with outrage.

"Tiny brain? Tiny brain?! You're kidding, right? _I've_ got a tiny brain, and you failed that Math test _how _many times, again? Three, was it? No, four, if my 'tiny brain' remembers correctly."

"Twice, for your information!" Sachi snapped, flushing with resentment and what could have been shame. "And who was the one who didn't complete the Art assignment – _two weeks in a row_?"

"I had legitimate reasons for that!" the other girl shot back furiously. "Besides, Art is one of the subjects that count for nothing. Isn't that the only one you're _good _at?"

"Why, you little snot!" Sachi cried. "Didn't you're mother ever teach you any manners?"

"Well, they're better than _yours_," the smaller girl smirked. "The first lesson _I _was taught is that calling names is childish and rude. Maybe _you _need to be taught some manners, sea mutt!"

"ARGH! THAT'S IT!" Sachi yelled, and, in a flurry of spiky blue hair and black curls, she dove for the smaller girl, who was tackled to the floor with a horrified shriek.

The girls already in the room, and the few others who had just come through the door stood around in total shock.

"Hey – guys!" Umeko tried to call tentatively over the mixture of shouts, shrieks, curses and smacking noises as hands and feet collided with arms and legs, and possibly a cheek, if Akane (a very frightened Akane) heard correctly.

The door opened again, and an older voice exclaimed: "Whoa!" in surprise. Akane didn't have time to look around at the new faces – not that it would have been very possible anyway. There were people jumping out of the way of the brawling girls all over the place. The room was a flurry of brightly coloured hair and shouting females.

Then, just to add to the chaos of the moment, two figures materialised in the middle of the room (and, coincidentally, the middle of the scuffle). Suddenly, the outraged girls were being torn apart, a very displeased Yume keeping a firm grip on Sachi, the other girl being restrained by a tallish, pale-skinned girl with black smudged around her golden eyes and layered black hair sticking up everywhere like a bird's nest, two longer plaits protruding from the frayed messiness, just touching her shoulders. Akane immediately noticed that her ears were elf-shaped, almost identical to Yume's.

There was a deathly silence, somewhat threaded with the shock of the girls who weren't involved in the dispute.

"What is going on here?" Yume demanded, silvery eyes blazing. "I thought I made it clear you were all supposed to be quiet?"

"We're so sorry Yume-san!" Umeko cried immediately, fixing her nurse's cap from where it had slid a little on her head.

"Yeah, Tanaka-san walked in all angry-like, then they were suddenly going all out!" Kiseki added enthusiastically, like it had been a fight scene from a movie.

"We were actually being quiet," Sazuki said quickly, but the now impatient lavender-haired girl held up one hand for silence. In her steely grip, Sachi glared at the shorter girl, her eyes burning with resentment. She was panting a little, one of her cheeks was red (possibly from a slap), and her fringe was messy. In the arms of the golden-eyed teenager, her foe returned the glare with a venomous look of loathing.

"Nakamura-san, care to explain why you and Tanaka-san were fighting – _again_?" the girl with the bird's nest hair asked, sounding somewhat disdainful. Sachi frowned, pressed a few fingers to her lips to check for blood, and opened her mouth.

"She ratted on us!" the black-haired girl said quickly, before she had a chance to speak.

"Is your name Nakamura Sachi?" her captor demanded, a little rashly. Blushing, the deep blue-eyed girl fell silent, shooting death glares at Sachi every few seconds.

"What were you going to say, Nakamura-chan?" Sazuki asked kindly. Sachi sighed.

"I'm not exactly sure," she said slowly. "I was talking to the girls, then the door burst open and Tanaka was suddenly yelling in my face about ratting, or something equally stupid. Then we started arguing."

"Liar!" the shorter girl spat, struggling to break free of the golden-eyed girl. "You wish it was like that. As I recall, _you _threw the first insult!"

"_You _barged in and started accusing me! What was I supposed to do?" Sachi demanded.

"Oh, I don't know... Handle it like a mature person?" the other suggested sarcastically. Sachi was frowning again.

"Get off my back, you stuck up little snitch!" she snapped.

"See, there you go again – insult after insult! They just keep coming, don't they, Nakamura?"

"Stop being such a patronising brown-noser!" Sachi shot back.

"Well!" the shorter girl began, her cheeks puffing up with anger. "Perhaps if–"

"Both of you, enough! Stop arguing!" the golden-eyed girl cried finally, looking exasperated. "Seriously, if all you two are going to do is waste everyone's time with these petty squabbles, we may as well apply to have one of you separated, and we don't want to have to remove either of you from the dorm, do we?"

"Exactly," a voice – the same one Akane recognised had exclaimed in surprise when they'd come through the door – piped up, and a girl broke away from the small crowd that had formed by the door. Akane looked at the new face with curiosity. She was a tall girl, tall and sturdy-looking, with skin the colour of milk chocolate, and large, slanted eyes such a dark shade of brown they seemed almost black. She had a large – by Japanese standards, anyway – elegantly curved nose, and thick, neatly shaped black eyebrows, which accentuated her pleading expression. In the middle of her forehead was a small, strange symbol, sort of curved strokes joined together. Akane felt herself blinking at it curiously, wondering what it was. Obviously, she was from some Middle Eastern country; maybe India or Sri Lanka.

The girl stood between the two feuding, younger girls, and put her hands on her hips. Several gold bangles around one slender wrist jingled together with the movement. She was wearing a pair of thick black sweatpants with the hot pink katakana characters for 'Mew Academy' down one leg, and a matching hot pink t-shirt over a white long-sleeved top.

"Can't you guys just try to get along for once?" she pleaded, her deep voice thick as honey. Her dark eyes glanced from one stubborn girl to the other. Her thick black hair fell messily, brushing her shoulders a little, and was bushy and shiny. "Sachi-chan?"

Sachi sighed.

"Fine," she said, a little snappier than she intended, rolling her eyes. The Middle-Eastern girl turned to the other offender.

"Emiko-chan?"

The other girl said nothing, folding her arms across her chest in a very defensive manner.

"Tanaka-san? Please?" It was a little impatient now.

"Okay! Fine. Whatever," the girl named Emiko replied quickly, tired of the quarrel. "Can I go now? I've got homework to do."

"Of course you do," Sachi muttered snidely. "But it won't be due for another month and a half."

"Nakamura!" Yume scolded. The blue-haired girl smirked a little, but obediently fell silent.

"Yes, you can go," the girl in the school tracksuit replied gently. Without another word, Emiko turned on her small heel and stalked away to her bunk – the bottom one second from the left. There was a small pause, while everyone breathed a silent sigh of relief.

"Nakamura-san," Yume said, clearing her throat a little. "I suggest you learn to be more responsible. Remember, you are setting an example now for your transfer student. Everything you do or say is vital."

"Oh!" Sachi exclaimed, turning quickly, her dark brown eyes searching the room for her shy friend. Akane was standing meekly in the corner, waiting for something to happen. The spunky girl was instantly washed over by a wave of regret. She hoped she hadn't left a bad impression on the small girl.

"Hey, Kikuchi-san? Let's go to Shirogane-sensei now for your appointment," Sachi suggested, as calmly as possible. Akane nodded her head silently, and most pairs of eyes in the room swivelled to her. She immediately blushed self-consciously and dropped her gaze to her feet.

"Oh – is this the new girl?" the deep voice of the dark-skinned girl asked in surprise. "I didn't even see her there!"

"You guys can meet her later," Sachi's bubbly voice replied. "Right now we're late for a meeting with Shirogane-sensei."

"Alright," the tall girl replied easily. "Everyone! Curfew in half an hour! Now's the time to finish anything up, so go now, while you have the chance. And, while these two are gone, prepare for a lecture. Why weren't you back from the hot springs before half past nine?"

"Come on, Kikuchi-san," Sachi said in a quietly urgent voice, reaching out to touch the new girl's arm. Nervous mutters were sweeping through the girls in the room. There was a definite sense of awkward tension settling in the dormitory – she could sense trouble was coming, and the surly expression on Yume's pointy face was an effective enough warning. She darted out the dorm door after Sachi. As they walked away along the corridor, Akane winced a little as a muffled Cyclone Yume echoed after them.

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**Yay! OC introduction! We welcome: Kiseki, Sazuki, Umeko, and Madar! (applause!) **

**NOTE: Kiseki means 'miracle', in the interest of the creator of Nessa Swenson ;) I hope she isn't too Purin-over-the-top-hyper. I really like her the way she is; she's one of my favourite characters so far :)**

**Third chapter down! I'm about to begin the eighth, so expect some updates soon. I'll get another chapter up as soon as I can, I promise. Just bear with me; I'm still alive, guys! Thanks for being patient!**

**Until the next scene! Much love,**

**Cherrie**

**xoxo**


	4. A1,P1,S4: Meeting

**Good evening, Fictioners!**

**Tonight, I sat for a moment and thought to myself: 'It's time I do something about my absence on Fan Fiction.' So, I decided to update both MA and FLoaBW in one go! Aren't I good? I've been sitting here for a while, carefully writing author's notes and editing... Man, I hope you guys forgive me for my absence, 'cause I think me spending so much valuable study time preparing long-awaited updates for you guys balances the books a bit.**

**Speaking of which, I doubt I'll be able to get another update in any time soon. I apologise, everyone, for my lack of consitent updating, but I'm doing my best. Thanks everyone who's entered their OC's to, read, or read and reviewed this story. I appreciate the support from you guys, and I'm not giving up yet - school is not going to topple my determination to get this story going properly.**

**So, here's chapter four - I hope you all enjoy it :) Sorry if there are any errors; it's 10:30 pm here and I'm darned sleepy ha-ha-ha!**

**Without further ado, the next chapter awaits!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I do, however, own Akane, Sachi, Yume and Emiko :)**

**Dedications:**

**Story for MewCuxie12 (who I don't think has even read this to know about it!). Chapter for Old-Fashioned Girl22 / ThE BoOkWoRmS, because of her lovely review, which did not drop my IQ by five points from reading it, as I didn't have five IQ points to lose! Thanks for reading and reviewing, and for accepting my adaption of Nessa xx**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE FOUR

"Kikuchi-san," Sachi said, clearing her throat a little, "I am so sorry."

Akane turned wide, chocolate brown eyes to the girl, surprised.

"Why?" she asked quietly. Sachi was blushing.

"Well, I did the wrong thing. I acted so badly with Tanaka – you must think terribly of me!"

"Of course not," Akane murmured, smiling a little, her cheeks a little pink. Sachi beamed a wide smile of relief.

"Really? I was afraid I'd frightened you," she said, sighing happily. "I'm not like that normally. It's just Tanaka. I can't stand her. Seriously – if there's anyone you avoid, it's her. She's a nutcase, and she's an only child, so she's always had everything she wants. She thinks she's a damn princess!"

Her eyes flashed darkly as she tugged the old-fashioned cord by the elevator shaft. Akane listened to the squeaking of the pulley and the quiet, muffled chatter from the dormitories behind them. Beside her, Sachi tapped her foot impatiently as she leaned against the pale pink wall. Finally, the lift doors slid open with a ding! and they stepped into the empty elevator.

"Now," Sachi said, pressing the top floor button, "I'll tell you a little bit about the people in our dorm. For some reason, there was a strange imbalance this year. Normally, there are two girls from each class; ninth, tenth, eleventh, twelfth. But this year, one of the Seniors never appeared – she lives at home – and there was a spare place. So you took her spot. But there are four ninth graders – you, me, Sazuki-chan, and Tanaka, who you already met. Then there's Momoka-san, the Cyniclon with the bird's nest black hair, and Kasai-san from the tenth grade, Yume-san from the eleventh grade, and Madar-sama from the twelfth grade. Got that?"

Akane nodded a meek affirmation, praying she wouldn't get anyone's names confused.

"Now, as the eldest in the dorm, Madar-sama is our leader. Well, unofficial. All the twelfth-graders are," Sachi explained. "It's their job to watch out for everyone in the dorm; make sure everyone's doing the right thing, and that sort of stuff. They've got to be the most responsible out of all of us – if any of us break the rules, blame pretty much lands on them. They keep everyone in line. Everyone has their turn when they hit twelfth grade. It's one of the customs of the school."

"Oh," Akane murmured, wide-eyed. A question popped into her mind.

"What about the other girls... Aren't they in the dormitory, too?"

"Oh, you mean Kiseki-chan and Umeko-chan? Well, they're actually in the dorm _next _to ours, but it's joined with ours. We share the kitchenette in the middle – like all the other pairs of dorms in the corridor – so we all hang out in either dorm whenever we want," Sachi explained. "Instead of thinking of them as two different, joined dorms, think of them as one big, double-roomed dormitory, with a kitchen in the middle. It's easier that way."

"Oh... Okay," Akane said quietly, taking all this in. "So... the girl with the book...?"

"Rin-sama? She's the supposed leader of the other dorm, but she spends so much time with her nose in a book that she has no responsibility over them whatsoever," Sachi said, wrinkling her nose a little, her face disdainful. "That's why Yume has to stand in and be the leader for her. It's not really fair, but someone has to do it, and Yume does it well..."

"So... there are eight girls in the other dorm, too?" Akane's voice was so soft, Sachi wanted to give her a microphone. She carefully contained her frustration, and focused her energy on giving a helpful response.

"Exactly. You met Kiseki-chan, Umeko-chan and Rin-sama. Then there's another girl from our grade, three from the tenth grade, and a weird loner from the eleventh grade. Steer clear of her – she's scary. You'll see what I mean when you meet her," Sachi said, dark eyes warning. Akane felt her own eyes widen with a sort of fear. Then the lift shuddered to a stop and the doors slid open once more, and they couldn't talk any further.

The corridor they walked quickly down had a shiny, blue-tiled floor and clean, cream walls. The doors were similar to the ones from their own corridor, but had silver characters instead of the brass numbers, each one reading a different name. The entire place was much brighter than the hallway downstairs.

"These are the teachers' quarters," Sachi explained, lowering her voice to a whisper. "Shirogane-sensei's room is the one at the very end. He's the headmaster, in case you didn't pick up on that. Did I tell you that already?"

Akane shook her head and Sachi shrugged, glancing casually at the names on the doors as they walked past, her blueberry fringe bouncing a little against her forehead with each step. Their footsteps echoed against the tiles, the sharp taps breaking the otherwise daunting silence.

Finally, they reached the white door at the end of the corridor. Akane waited, hands clasped nervously, as Sachi rapped her knuckles against the wood. After a few seconds' silence, it swung back to reveal a tall, thin man dressed in a white suit set, his blonde hair swept back off his face. His piercing blue eyes swept over them, flashing a little with recognition when he saw Akane.

"Hello," he said simply, shoving his hands in his pockets. Akane felt herself redden and she cast her eyes to the tiled floor. Was this man the principal? He wasn't at all like she'd expected him to be – as far as she was concerned, all school headmasters were old, fat and balding, with thick glasses and absolutely no sense of fashion. This strikingly good-looking young man with the exquisite taste in clothing couldn't be the mastermind of the school – he just didn't fit the picture.

Beside her, Sachi bowed her head politely, and Akane hastened to do the same, heat emanating from her cheeks.

"Shirogane-sensei, I've brought Kikuchi-san, like you wanted," Sachi said. The blonde man inclined his head a little to show he'd heard. There was a twinkle of amusement in his eyes, that didn't reach his lips. He stepped back to grant them entrance into his room.

"Thank you," he said. "You can go, Nakamura-san."

"I'll come back later, okay?" Sachi whispered, as Akane realised, in horror, that she was expected to go into the headmaster's room alone. The blue-haired girl caught her wide eyes and forced her to nod in affirmation.

"Bye," Sachi said, practically skipping away down the hall. Akane watched her with a sense of foreboding, feeling like she'd almost been betrayed, and was about to enter the dragon's lair by herself.

"Well, come in, then," the blonde man said. Starting a little, she obediently scooted past him into the room, eyes still fixed on a spot near her feet. Akane heard the door shut quietly behind her, and felt the man moving around in the room.

"Take a seat," his calm voice said, and she looked up, glancing around the room for the first time. It wasn't at all similar to her dormitory, which was a simple square shape. These quarters had several rooms branching off from the main one, which seemed to be a sort of lounge room, with couches arranged comfortably around a brown coffee table. It was simply furnished, scarcely decorated, but it had a lived-in feel to it. She imagined he spent a lot of his time up here.

Perching obediently on the edge of one sofa cushion, Akane listened to the silence, waiting for something to happen. A moment later, the blonde man reappeared, a steaming mug of coffee in his hand. He sat down wordlessly on the sofa opposite her and surveyed her for a moment with his clear blue eyes. She shrank away shyly, cheeks burning with self-consciousness, awaiting his judgement of her.

"Welcome to Mew Academy," the man said eventually, breaking the silence, "Kikuchi Akane."

She glanced up at him, surprised, wondering how he knew her name. She didn't dare ask him, though, for fear of appearing rude and precocious.

"My name's Shirogane Ryou," he explained, relaxing back against the cushions. She nodded quietly, acknowledging the introduction, and silence fell once more. It was an extremely uncomfortable moment for her, yet comfortable for him, she realised, when she noticed him watching her, a thoughtful expression on his face.

"You received our letter?" Ryou asked, to which she nodded, hands clasped neatly in her lap.

"Are you confused as to why you were invited here?" he inquired, and watched her cheeks redden. She nodded again, not looking at him. She was a curious thing, he mused; terribly shy and obviously lacking confidence.

_That could hinder things considerably..._

Ryou sighed, a sign that he was about to explain something to her, which he did, several seconds later.

"Mew Academy is a school for unique human beings with genetic material that can be altered and fused with the genetic material of a particular endangered species," he said, and she looked up, interested, as he continued. "These human beings possess the ability to transform, using the genetic material of their species, into a creature known as a Mew Mew. The Mew Mews are almost a species of their own – part human, part animal. They are heroes of the planet, protecting the environment from self-destruction, or harm from others. Do you understand?"

Akane nodded yes. She did understand, although it was a fantastic story that she was having difficulty believing. However, she let the man speak without interruption.

"The reason you were called here is because your genetic material – your DNA – has the ability to be genetically mutated. You possess, within you, the ability to become a Mew Mew," Ryou said, and her heart jumped a little. Her stomach churned. He waited for a reaction that never came, and frowned a little. Most girls would be squealing, jumping around, or have enormous, sparkling eyes right now. The girl before him simply sat silently, hands still folded in her lap.

As for Akane herself, her mind was a wave of thoughts. She wondered if it were possible what this man was saying. Surely, if she had unique DNA, she'd have noticed odd behavioural things in her, or she'd have a connection to animals, or something. But she just felt normal. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more it seemed he had the wrong girl.

"Excuse me," she said quietly – an ironic notion of politeness since there was no conversation to interrupt, and he was looking at her anyway. He raised one eyebrow in acknowledgement of her question, a gesture imploring her to continue.

"How do you know I'm a... one of those people?" she asked, wording it carefully. It was also a quick cover for the fact that she couldn't remember what they were called. He seemed to pick up on this fact straight away, and smiled a secret smirk.

"You really don't know what a Mew Mew is, do you?" he guessed, and she blushed.

"Sorry."

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, Kikuchi-san," Shirogane reassured her, a tinge of kindness on the edge of his voice. "Well, you do now, so don't worry too much - you'll learn soon enough. We have devices that show us an imbalance in the genetic material of human DNA. That's how we know. People with a large imbalance are potential Mew Mews."

Akane nodded her head slowly, feeling dumb.

"I'm sorry I can't tell you more, but we're a bit short on time," he said. "So you'll just have to learn in your History class. Now, when we did the test on your DNA, the results clearly indicated your potential. So we sent you the letter."

It was starting to make sense now, in her mind. It certainly explained the reason for the letter. But there was still one thing that was troubling her.

"Excuse me."

"You're excused."

"Pardon me?" she asked, taken aback, brown eyes wide with confusion. He smirked openly and waved it away.

"Never mind. What were you going to say?"

"Oh... Well... I think you have the wrong person," she said, in barely more than a whisper. His eyes widened a little with interest.

"Why is that?"

"Well... I don't think I'm special at all – I've never felt abnormal before, and I have no idea what... my animal... is..." she trailed off, realising how stupid it sounded and blushing a little.

"That's nothing," Ryou told her quickly. "No one knows that until they are injected."

"In... jected?"

"In order to actually become a Mew Mew, your DNA has to be merged with that of the animal. To do that, we have to inject the DNA into your body," he explained calmly. Akane paled at the idea.

"Does... does it... hurt?"

"No. Not at all," he said, smiling a little. "Well, no one's ever complained before, so we assume it's a painless process for everyone."

"Oh..."

"So, if you're ready, follow me."

"We... you have to inject me... _now_?" she stammered in alarm. Ryou turned from where he'd risen from the sofa and surveyed her for a moment with his cool blue eyes.

"Frightened?"

"... A... A little..." Akane admitted, blushing furiously. She fidgeted with her fingers, knotting them through each other nervously.

"Trust me. There's nothing to be afraid of. Even if we are wrong about your DNA, nothing will happen except that your genetic material will reject the animal genetic material, and it will be expelled from your body as waste product," he said smoothly, striding towards the door, hands shoved back in his pockets. Without questioning him further, Akane rose obediently from the cushion and trailed behind him, through a door he unlocked into what looked like a small laboratory. It was a reasonably large room with white walls, a high roof, and a shining, tiled floor. There were benches lining the walls, atop of which sat various strange-looking inventions and mechanical devices. Touching absolutely nothing, Akane crossed quietly to where the blonde man was standing before a set of computers, each seemingly inter-linked.

"Just wait here a moment."

Having no objections, Akane did just that, glancing around with a curious interest at all his gadgets, feeling like a child visiting the dentist and looking at all the drills on the tray.

When she looked back at Shirogane, he was holding what looked like a long, pointed, steel gun. A shudder ran down her back as her eyes swept along it. It appeared, to her, to be strikingly identical to a powerful weapon used by soldiers in a war, and images of pain and death flickered through her mind like photographs on a slide-projector.

"It's not as scary as it looks," Ryou said presently, as if reading her mind. She looked up into his face and realised he'd been watching her. She nodded, reassuring herself as much as him.

"Are you ready?" he asked. Wishing desperately to shake her head 'no', but knowing she would be practically disobeying the headmaster, Akane nodded her head, feeling like she was condemning herself to some horrible death. He smirked to himself at the expression of terror on her face as he instructed her to raise her left arm. He turned her arm over and pushed up the sleeve of her pink jumper, exposing the inside of her wrist.

"Here we go."

As he pressed the gun tip lightly, but firmly against her soft skin, Akane squeezed her eyes tightly shut, waiting for the pain. There was a click, a quiet hiss, and a momentary pressure against her arm. Ryou waited, eyebrows furrowed. Normally, white light would explode from the gun, taking the form of whatever animal her genetic material was matched to. This transparent animal of light would typically engulfe her, then the light would fade, and a mark would appear where he'd punctured the wrist.

Confused, he took away the gun and inspected her skin. No mark.

Wondering if it was over, Akane slowly opened her eyes and willed herself to look over at the blonde man. He was gazing at her arm, looking very surprised and displeased. The gun dangled precariously from his right hand, which was hanging at his side, unnoticed.

"D-did it... work?" Akane found the courage to ask, wondering why he was frowning.

"Just a moment."

Shirogane put the injector down and went to the computers, bringing up several screens. What intrigued him the most was the one with the silhouette image of her body, which had a single white word flashing across it.

SUCCESSFUL

"Well..." he trailed off, wondering what to tell the young girl standing behind him. He turned and looked at her, blue eyes serious and unsure. She waited, blinking furiously. She didn't feel any different.

_At least it didn't hurt..._

"According to the information gathered after the injection, the process was successful," Ryou said. "However, there was none of the usual indications that it worked. So, without those results –" he nodded towards the computer screen "– my instinctive answer would be that it didn't work."

"S-so... How do you know if...?" Akane trailed off, trying to wrap her mind around what he was telling her.

"Well, we don't," he admitted, eyes skimming over the information on the screen. "But we have to assume the generator is correct. It's never been wrong before, and there's a higher chance of a human making a calculated error than a computer."

"Oh," Akane said, not knowing this, as she had had little experience with computers.

"What I suggest you do now is attend your classes with the assumption that you'll eventually have a reaction," Shirogane said. "Think you can do that?"

She nodded, pulling down the sleeve of her jumper and hugging herself, feeling like a problem child. Everyone else in the entire school had had a normal reaction. Why was she the only one that the injection process didn't work on?

"Good. Your timetable has already been completed – you'll find it practically mirrors Nakamura's – so take this," he said, holding out a piece of paper, which she folded up and tucked in her jean pocket. A silence fell between them.

"Well, I guess that's all we can do for now," Ryou said eventually, walking away from the computers. "If you need to adjust your timetable, we can sort that out later."

She followed him to the door and slipped through it when he held it open for her.

"Do you have any questions?" Shirogane asked, walking with her to the main door. She paused.

"Umm... my books...?"

"Your teachers will give them to you at the beginning of class," the blonde man explained. "As long as you get yourself some notebooks and pens. We don't supply those. Unless you want the tacky school stationery..."

He seemed to roll his eyes at this idea, which she found quite uncharacteristic of the usual school headmaster or headmistress, who she imagined was supposed to be enthusiastic about that sort of thing. He muttered something about 'Akasaka' and 'lame school spirit', which she didn't quite catch, but waited patiently for him to speak to her again, as it seemed he would.

"Anyway, if you want the school stuff, you can get it from the uniform shop. Oh – don't forget to go tomorrow morning. I'm sure Nakamura has told you. You're fitting is at eight."

"Okay..." she trailed off. Another silence fell.

"Well. I guess you can go back to your dormitory," Ryou said finally, turning the handle of the door and pulling it down.

"Oh – umm... What... What do I tell the others?" Akane asked, the question popping into her mind. He paused, then said, "Whatever you like." He swung the door open, and the first thing they noticed was the vivid blue hair of Sachi, who was sitting against the wall. Upon seeing the door swing back, she jumped up, grinning and pulling a set of headphones out of her ears.

"Hey! Finished?" she asked, bouncing on the spot. Akane nodded and turned to the headmaster, bowing respectfully.

"Thank you for your time."

"Any time."

"Okay, come on Kikuchi-chan. I sat there for about twenty minutes – gotta keep moving before my legs go back to sleep," Sachi said, grabbing one pink sleeve and dragging the auburn-haired girl back down the corridor.

Shirogane watched their slight forms hurrying towards the elevator, leaning casually against the door frame with his arms folded comfortably across his chest, his lips curling up into a small smile.

**Huh. Isn't that foreboding? Wonder what the deal is with Akane... Well, I, of course, already know this, but you guys will just have to hang around a little longer to find out.**

**Unfortunately, no OC character introductions in this chapter, but I believe it was an important chapter for the progression of the story, don't y'all? Besides, there's PLENTY of time later for all the character intros! Bear in mind - not all the OCs are in this particular story. There are other years, remember. Your character may not necessarily be involved in this part of the tale, but that doesn't mean they're not in it it at all - it's very important not to forget that.**

**So, thanks for sticking with me and my stories. If you've got a moment, and you haven't already read it, why not check out my other story (yes, self-advertisement. Well, I sacrificed a lot of time updating that one, too, so it'd be nice if someone read it! Ha-ha-ha!) 'For Lack of a Better Word'? Pretty please with a cherry on top?**

**Thanks for stopping by!**

**Until the next scene (still going Shakespearean - Much Ado About Nothing is a very amusing play, by the way. If you're into Shakespeare, read it! It's hilarious and fun :P),**

**Cherrie**

**xoxo**


	5. A1,P1,S5: Good Morning!

**Yo, dudes and dudettes.**

**So, here's the belated fifth chapter of Mew Academy. Due to the spit-the-dummy nagging of a fellow, dedicatedly-updating author on this site, I've decided to forgo STUDYING FOR MY FINAL EXAMS WHICH WILL DEFINE MY ENTIRE FUTURE to update this story (and For Lack of a Better Word, too) instead.**

**So said author'd better be damn well grateful! -shakes fist in direction of said author-**

**I hope you guys like this chapter; it's pretty hectic and nuts for a while there, and it's a little slow in the progression of the story, but what can you do? It gives a little bit more of an insight into Akane... and little fillers are alright at the start of the story. Trust me, we've got a LONG WAY TO GO with Mew Academy.**

**Authors/Authoresses who are freaking out about whether their characters will be in the story: the chances are YES. That's pretty much it. I had one author who seemed like she was about to kill me -nervous laugh- So, to you, author-who-made-me-nervous, CHILL. Your shy little misfit IS IN THE STORY. And it may be sooner rather than later, but I've yet to slot her in. So peace out for a while, and hang with me. She'll appear.**

**Now that all that's out of the way, I'm off. So, happy reading and writing, and PLEASE review if you read :) **

**Thankyou!**

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**DISCLAIMER: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I do however, own Mew Academy, Akane, Sachi, Yume and Emiko :)**

**Dedications:**

**Story for Mew Cuxie12 (who I think STILL hasn't even realised I'm even writing it!). Chapter for ZephyrFiction. There.****GO UPDATE NOW, DOOFUS!**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE FIVE

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A shrill ringing interrupted the hazy sleepiness of the girls in dorm seventeen. The pale, slender hand of a small girl slid out from under her plaid black and pink covers, tapping the top of the old-fashioned alarm until it obediently fell silent. The suddenly disturbed peacefulness of the room returned to contented silence. Tucked into the corner of the bottom bunk of the set furthest to the right, against the wall, the girl moved, awakening. She reluctantly admitted defeat – the clock had performed its job well; she was wide awake now – and slowly pushed back the school-crested duvet, sliding out of bed.

No-one else was awake yet. It didn't take her long to figure that out. Amidst the gentle snores and consistent, deep breathing of her fellow dorm mates, there was the quiet, merry singing of several birds outside. As she re-made her bed, Akane glanced through the glassy pane, at the misty blue morning sky, wispy white clouds, and the twisting branches of a cherry blossom tree beside her window. The two singing birds were sitting at the precariously thin tips of one of its many gnarled branches, unaware that they were being watched. Leaving them in their blissfulness, Akane turned from the window and crossed to the wardrobe, tiptoeing with the precision of one who has natural ability.

Sliding the door open as quietly as she could, so as not to wake the others, the shy girl took out her pale denim jeans, simple white tee with pale pink lining, and her strawberry jumper, and peered around for a suitable place to change. Between two of the bunk beds was another sliding door set in the wall. The artistically painted characters above it explained that it was the bathroom. Praying it wouldn't make much noise, she carefully slid it back and slipped into the room she hadn't yet seen.

It was a very small room, with a set of white basins set beside each other in a bench with cupboards. On the wall above them were two identical, simple square mirrors. Off to her left was an even smaller room, presumably the toilet, and straight ahead was another sliding door identical to the one she had just come through. Obviously, it led into the other dormitory. The walls of the bathroom were decorated with delicate, artistic scrolls, depicting different admirable qualities. One read 'Beauty', another read 'Elegance', and a third read 'Dignity'.

She gently brushed her long, delicate auburn hair and tied it into its low pigtails. She expertly looped and knotted her sparkly pink ribbons around the elastic as she returned to the dorm. Surprised at the silence that greeted her, signifying the laziness of her other roommates, Akane padded softly to the little adjoining kitchenette. Wondering why there was no noise coming from next door either, she checked her watch, the thought of having the wrong time crossing her mind. However, she did not have the wrong time, it really was just after six in the morning.

Shrugging it off, Akane quietly washed her hands in the cool water that splashed from the kitchen faucet and pulled open the small refrigerator. Her lips absently pursed themselves. Someone had recently been shopping, but there was a large imbalance in the range of food available. Her chocolate eyes glanced from the bare meat and poultry shelves, to the almost overflowing fruit and vegetable tubs at the bottom. The snacks shelf was quite full, too. Someone definitely had a favouring for yoghurt tubs.

Deciding to make as good an impression upon her roommates as she could (and purely to fill the large amount of time she had left until the day began) Akane's simple mind concocted a recipe. One that would hopefully appeal to all kinds of tooth. She reached into the fruit and vegetable tub and pulled out a vast selection of fruits. Then she took out a couple of yoghurt tubs. Searching around in the few cupboards she located appropriate utensils, including, most usefully, a blender that looked like it was about to fall apart. Nevertheless, she'd worked with much more primitive utensils before, so she set up what she had without complaint.

Then she set to work.

XX

"Oh, hello."

The voice, gentle and sweet, almost caused the shy girl to jump out of her skin. She looked around from where she had been pouring her fruity creation into a plastic jug she'd just found (and washed a few times to remove the dust that had settled in the bottom). Standing in the doorway to the kitchenette, from their dormitory, was a slender girl, very pretty, with long blue-black hair that fell to her waist in sweeping waves. Her flawless skin was white like winter clouds, but her cheeks were flushed a merry pink. The girl surveyed Akane with curiously blue eyes, pale and clear, like ice.

The girl, already dressed in her uniform, absent-mindedly ran one hand through her half-wet hair. Clearly, she'd just returned from the shower, wherever that may be.

"Who are you?" she asked, not unkindly. Akane, startled out of her momentary reverie at this sudden reminder of her poor manners, immediately put down what she had in her hands, clasped them together and bowed politely, cheeks flushing with embarrassment.

"I'm so sorry! Pardon me for being so rude! I'm Kikuchi…"

"Oh? The new girl?" the gentle voice asked, somewhat surprised. "Please, you can stop bowing now – don't flatter me. I thought you'd still be asleep, what with that long journey you had to travel yesterday. Aren't you tired at all?"

Straightening up, Akane turned back to what she had been doing, glancing back every few seconds at the new face. It was a little awkward, being watched preparing food. The pretty girl smiled sweetly at her.

"I guess I _am _a little tired, but I always get up early," Akane said, answering her question a few seconds late.

"I'm impressed. You were up before me," the other replied, still smiling. "I'm Komosaki. You can call me Kasai." She glanced around the kitchenette at the multiple bowls of food, raising one neat eyebrow delicately. "Is all this food for you? That's a lot for one person."

"Oh no!" Akane replied quickly, reddening a little. "This isn't for me. This for everyone else. I thought since I was awake, I'd make breakfast…"

"How kind of you!" Kasai commented, eyes widening a little in surprise. "No one makes breakfast here for anyone but themselves. People are usually so lazy. It's every girl for herself in these dorms."

With a light laugh, the pretty girl quietly examined the contents of each bowl, turning back to the shier of the two, who carried the last few items – the plastic jug of fruit juice, and a bowl of yoghurt and mixed fruit – over to the small square table against the wall opposite the bench and appliances, setting them down on the tabletop.

Kasai propped her small hands on her hips and watched the new girl clasp her hands shyly, awaiting a comment on her handiwork. Her chocolate eyes were cast to the wooden floor.

"How long did all this take you?" Kasai asked, musing to herself that the other appeared to be an extremely unconfident, introverted girl. "It looks amazing."

Smiling a little, Akane replied, "Not too long. Maybe fifteen minutes or so…"

"Wow," Kasai said, truly impressed. "Do you cook often?"

Akane nodded.

"Please, help yourself," she offered, gesturing to a neatly stacked pile of small round bowls, holding out a shining silver spoon. "I made sure I only used half the supplies. There's still enough left for the rest of today, and tomorrow."

Kasai smiled and scooped some fresh fruit and yoghurt into her bowl, thanking the shy girl and wandering back into their dorm. Akane watched her leave, envying her delicate beauty, and began washing up the dirty utensils.

XX

Morning noise gradually filled the once peaceful dorm with a speed that quite surprised Akane. Standing in the coolness of the kitchenette, quietly eating a small bowl of yoghurt and mixed berries, she listened to the deliberately quiet chatter becoming general conversation, more and more voices adding to it, amidst yawns of awakening. Before she knew it, the level of noise almost matched what it had been the night before, which was quite impressive, considering the previous night the dorm had resembled a circus of zoo animals.

Then, suddenly, the kitchenette was quite full of girls. Some she recognized, many she did not. They all crowded around the table, admiring the food and chattering away.

"Ooh! It looks good, ne?"

"Who made this?"

"What _is _that?"

"Can we actually eat it?"

"Huzzah! Food!"

"Guys, not everyone is awake next door. Shh!"

"I don't like banana…"

"Is that passion fruit? Yum!"

"Wonder what's in the juice…"

With everyone talking at once, Akane had no chance to actually answer any of their questions. She waited patiently to the side, sipping her half-glass of water, wondering if there would ever be a silence among her dorm mates. They were reminding her of birds at the feeder.

"Good morning, Kikuchi-san."

The greeting came from a very calm-looking Yume, who glided into the kitchenette, her silver eyes impassionate; somewhat distasteful when she saw the gabble of chattering teenage girls by the table.

"Alright everyone, enough!" she finally snapped, swinging her silver-violet hair over her shoulder impatiently. "You're all like insufferable monkeys!"

"Hey, I can't help it, Yume-san!" Kiseki's chirpy voice called, and her merry face appeared among the herd. She was grinning like a child, her strawberry-blonde mane of curls bouncing against her shoulders. "You know it's in my genes!"

Yume repressed the urge to roll her eyes. They'd had this discussion many times before. Cute little Kiseki was fond of blaming her immature trouble-making ways on her genetic make-up. Yume strongly believed she could only blame _some_ of her behaviour on her monkey genes; the tall alien often felt it was a cop out for the monkey girl, to avoid getting in trouble.

"Yes, Sato-san, but its only seven in the morning. Even monkeys aren't that mischievous this early," she said. Kiseki merely grinned adorably, her large emerald eyes sparkling merrily.

"Girls – everyone take a step back from the table," Yume commanded coolly. "Now."

Silence immediately prevailed, and the multiple female bodies obediently moved away from the food. For the first time, a number of them noticed the auburn-haired girl waiting quietly in the corner.

"Oh, good morning Kikuchi-san," Sazuki said, smiling a little sheepishly. "We didn't see you there."

"Clearly," Yume replied dryly. Blushing a little, Sazuki broke away from the crowd and approached the shy girl, knowing that others would follow her. Several did. The vast majority, however, remained by the table. Kiseki and Umeko were among the followers, along with a moderately tall girl, her smooth chocolate brown ponytail streaked violet. Her round eyes were large and strangely attractive, dark brown, flecked golden. She smiled a little at Akane and introduced herself as 'Mika, Kiseki's friend'.

"So did you prepare all this?" a voice she recognized asked, from the table. Emiko was looking at the yoghurt, somewhat critically. She seemed to be scrutinizing it. Swallowing nervously, wondering what the feisty little girl was going to say, Akane nodded a few times.

"Why?" another girl, who she didn't know, asked curiously.

"Because she's a kind, thoughtful girl," Kasai replied, walking in gracefully, demanding all attention like a magnet. Akane smiled at her gratefully, and the pretty girl returned it, rinsing out her empty bowl in the sink. The other girls greeted Kasai in a chorus of 'good morning's and 'hello's. It was very impressive. She was clearly well-liked and respected among the others.

"So what's this one?" a girl asked, pointing to one of the yoghurts.

"Mango with apple and banana," Akane replied quietly. "And that one is strawberry with mixed wild berries. And that one is passion fruit with peach and strawberry."

"Interesting," said the gothic alien with the messy black hair and the golden eyes, reaching for a bowl.

"What's in the juice?" Mika asked curiously.

"Orange, pineapple, lime and apple," Akane reeled them off on her skinny fingers. "With a little bit of raspberry, too."

"Wow, you're really creative, Kikuchi-san," Sazuki commented, causing a faint blush of humble pleasure to creep onto the shy girl's cheeks.

"Yeah," Kiseki agreed. "I'd never dream of putting those fruits together. But they're actually really good!"

"I'm glad you like it," Akane said quietly, inclining her head a little in the polite thanks of a proud chef when receiving a good review. "Has anybody seen Nakamura-san this morning?"

"She's still asleep," Emiko replied instantly, chidingly. "_Naturally_. Lazy sod."

"Tanaka-san," Yume warned, and the black-haired girl fell silent, busying herself with pouring a juice. Akane sought explanation from the other girls, and Umeko broke away from the busy table, wandering over with a plate loaded with plums.

"Sachi has a tendency to sleep in," she said, obliging to Akane's questioning expression.

"She never gets up early," Sazuki added, rolling her placid hazel eyes.

"Yeah!" Kiseki agreed enthusiastically. "We tried to wake her up once. We've never gone near her when she's sleeping since. It's scary."

"Well, Sato-chan, you didn't have to _jump_ on her," Sazuki commented wryly. "That probably didn't help."

"What do you mean?" Kiseki asked cutely, tossing up a grape and tilting back her head so that it plopped into her open mouth. She grinned at Akane, winking playfully. While the two other girls delved into explanation as to why, exactly, jumping on people wasn't the best method of waking them up, Akane quietly dismissed herself from the group in the kitchenette and walked into the dormitory.

Sachi was the only person still in the room. Everyone else was having breakfast. The blue-haired girl was sleeping peacefully, tucked under her blue, bubble-patterned duvet, snoring a little. Akane watched her for several moments, wondering what to do. In half an hour, she had her appointment with the uniform shop. She didn't want to be late, but she didn't want her new friend to be annoyed at her, either. Torn between deciding, she chewed her bottom lip habitually.

Climbing the rungs of the ladder carefully, Akane reached level with the sleeping girl, exhaling quietly through her nose. She whispered Sachi's name nervously, expecting her head to be bitten off, but the girl was dead to the world. She cleared her throat a little, wondering if she was going to regret the decision to wake up her new friend. Thankfully, though, she was spared getting in trouble. Someone else did it for her.

"Kiseki - NO!"

Akane turned quickly, almost falling backwards off the ladder. All the way down at the opposite end of the row of bunk beds, she watched wild-haired Kiseki scale the ladder with amazing speed and precision. As the energetic girl leapt from bunk to bunk – very much like a monkey jumping from tree to tree, Akane noted – Sazuki and Umeko hurried in from the kitchen, their eyes wide with fear and alarm. Following them was a bewildered Mika, and a smirking Emiko, who stopped in the doorway and rested against it, folding her arms across her chest and crossing one leg over the other, resting it on its toe against the floor in a very casual pose. She watched, her velvet blue eyes dark with amusement, as the mayhem unfolded in the dorm.

Akane gripped the rungs of the ladder, watching with wide eyes as Kiseki bounded closer and closer, like an excitable puppy. Sazuki ran along the bases of the bunks alongside her, shouting up to her.

"Kiseki – stop! Remember what happened last time? Sachi will be so mad! Listen to me, Sato-chan! Please, STOP!"

Kiseki did indeed stop, when she reached the bunk beside Sachi's. She sat, watching the sleeping girl with eager emerald-green eyes, grinning enthusiastically, like a child about to be given candy. Akane marvelled at her early morning energy. Certainly, beside her, Sazuki and Umeko were looking a little bleary-eyed.

"Are you ready?" Kiseki asked dramatically, crouching on the bed, raising her arms like she was a gymnast about to perform.

"Kiseki-chan, please don't. We already know how she's going to react – what's the point in making her go angry again?" Sazuki asked desperately, trying to reason with her.

"I'm going to prove once and for all," Kiseki announced, tossing her bouncy curls over her shoulders, "that jumping on people _is _a good way of waking them up."

"But it's not!" Sazuki cried exasperatedly.

"Yes it is!" Kiseki cried back stubbornly. "Let me show you. Now, ready? One…"

"Kiseki, I don't want to see," Sazuki sighed, somewhat admitting defeat. Somehow, Sachi had managed to stay asleep, amid all the crazy shouts of her dormmates.

"Two…"

"I strongly advise you not to," the brown-haired girl said resignedly, stepping away from the bed instinctively.

"Three!" Kiseki cried. With a loud, gleeful, "Sachiii!" she leaped from the bed and took to the air. Akane watched her arc in slow motion, eyes wide. Sazuki blocked her ears. Umeko squeezed her eyes shut tight. Emiko raised one eyebrow.

In horror, everyone present in the room watched as flying-girl collided with sleeping-girl. For a split second there was total silence. Then, a horrible shriek met their ears. Akane jumped violently and let go of the ladder, her feet slipping against the wood. She tumbled to the floor, very ungracefully, landing on her backside and narrowly escaping whacking her head against the bottom rung of the ladder.

From her shocked position on the floor, Akane watched as a yelping figure bounded over the side of the bunk, landing lightly on the floor between the two bunk beds.

"SAAATOOO!"

Squeaking a mixture of terror and glee, Kiseki sped past a bewildered Akane, her wild hair flying. The next moment, another figure had jumped from the top bunk. Landing not-so-lightly, she stumbled across Akane's legs, looking surprised to see them there. Her focus was short-lived however, for next moment her furious chocolate eyes had locked onto the tiny fleeing girl, who was now cowering behind a terrified-looking Sazuki, and she stormed towards them like an uncontrollable demolition ball.

"SATO!" she barked, her angry voice piercing the comfortable atmosphere of the room. Many faces appeared in the doorway, watching in either curiosity or amusement, none of them actually brave enough to enter the room.

"HOW! DARE! YOU!" Sachi yelled, storming around like a yeti in her dolphin-adorned singlet and matching boxer shorts. Her short blue hair was spiked up everywhere, like she'd been electrified. Under different, less dangerous circumstances, Akane would have probably seen the humorous side of the situation.

Sachi reached around Sazuki, trying to grab the smaller girl. Giggling madly, Kiseki dodged her snatching fingers, like it was a fun game. Sazuki wailed as the two of them danced around her, her hands clasped firmly over her ears.

"HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU NOT TO JUMP ON ME?!" Sachi yelled. Kiseki poked her tongue out in what appeared to be a fun manner, but only served to infuriate the already outraged Nakamura further.

"GOD, KISEKI! YOU'RE SO CHILDISH! ACT YOUR GODDAMN AGE, FOR ONCE!"

Cowering on the floor, Akane watched like a transfixed child in a horror movie. Sazuki was still wailing as, fed up, Sachi started chasing Kiseki around her. They ran in circles, Sachi shouting profanities, Kiseki giggling like she was on a merry-go-round. Then, suddenly, Sazuki screamed as Kiseki took a flying leap and latched on to her back, clinging to her shoulders.

"KISEKI!" Umeko, Sachi and Sazuki shouted simultaneously. Sachi grabbed the small girl around the waist and promptly began trying to pry her from Sazuki. Laughing, Kiseki tightened her grip, encasing poor Sazuki's head in her arms. Buckling under the girl's weight, Sazuki flailed her arms, shaking her head and shoulders to loosen her grip.

"Help, please!" Sachi growled, yanking with all her might. "SOMEONE!"

Mika squeezed out from the crowd at the door and darted forward, juice flying from her cup and raining down everywhere. She promptly dropped the half empty cup and it spilled the remainder of its contents over the wooden floorboards, narrowly missing the rug.

"Kiseki-chan, please get down," Mika said, trying to reason with the uber-happy girl. "You're probably hurting Sazuki-san…"

This, however, didn't seem to change anything, despite the fact that the sliver of Sazuki's face that could be seen from between Kiseki's squeezing arms was now a shade of purple, indicating extremely high pressure. That and the moans that were coming from under Kiseki's strangely rope-like arms.

The three girls now trying to deal with Kiseki tried almost everything to get the stubborn girl to let go. Encouragement from Umeko, temptation in the form of sweets from Mika, and insults from Sachi (perhaps not so helpful in the scheme of things), but, five minutes later, their ideas were running dry, and Kiseki simply seemed to be having too much fun.

"Nakamura," Umeko said, distracting Sachi from the frustrating task for two seconds. "Perhaps you should look after Kikuchi-san…"

"Oh! Gosh!" Sachi cried, eyes wide. "I completely forgot! Akane-chan?"

She looked around for a moment, forgetting about Kiseki and Sazuki, located the bewildered new girl sitting on the floor and smiled guiltily.

"Hey, Nakamura!" a voice called from the doorway. She looked over in confusion. Emiko was watching the screen of her flip phone, smiling to herself, clearly amused.

"Why don't you take a bow?" Emiko suggested tauntingly. "I'm sure everyone in the school will congratulate you on such a fine performance after they see this on YouTube!"

"TANAKA!" Sachi roared. Grinning triumphantly, Emiko snapped her phone shut and pocketed it, zipping her skirt pocket shut. Face burning red, Sachi's thoughts were (once again) driven from Akane, and she threw herself at Emiko.

Their brawl lasted no more than three seconds, however, as girls scattered away from the feuding two, for in – literally – a split second, Yume and the gothic girl were there to break them apart. Evidently, Yume decided that the fun and games were over. Threatening Sachi seriously, she glided over to the three girls in the middle of the dorm and somehow managed to remove Kiseki from Sazuki, making it look effortless.

"Everybody," Yume said, her cool voice the only sound breaking the silence that had fallen. "Calm down. Enough rioting. This is reaching ridiculous. If you can't live together like mature students, we'll have everyone split up and rearranged. Start behaving like young women."

She let go of Kiseki, putting a significant gap between her and dazed, purple-faced Sazuki, and drifted back towards the kitchenette, muttering something about 'misbehave… only… Madar… absent…' under her whispery breath. She paused when she reached the doorway, turning to Sachi and Emiko, who were both very quiet.

"If there is any more violence between you two, I'll have you both put in detention for a week. Understand?" she asked, silvery eyes daring them to argue. Both girls nodded sheepishly.

"Good. Sachi, make sure you're not late for Kikuchi-san's appointment."

With that, Yume disappeared into the kitchenette. Glaring at Emiko, Sachi turned her back to the smaller girl, who pulled a face at her hair, and crossed the room to where Akane was still sitting in awe. She held out a hand and helped the shy girl to her feet.

"I'm so sorry, Akane-chan," Sachi said in a low voice. "I'm being a terrible host student. I'll make sure I behave better from now on."

"It's fine," Akane replied quietly, smiling a little, looking anywhere but at the other girl's short pyjamas. The amount of skin the blue-haired girl was revealing was a little bit of a discomfort to the modest girl. Sensing this awkwardness, Sachi refrained from grinning and went to get changed.

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**Yay! Another OC introduction :) Welcome Komosaki Kasai! (I hope she's okay; I tried to get the genuine-nice-and-extremely-well-liked thing as down pat as I could... she might not be so sickly sweet in future chapters, though... Actually, she won't, but don't worry. She'll remain as close to your description as possible, KK-san :P)**

**Oh! And Mika! I'll have to work on her, Mika-chan. I think I'll have to make her a little more violent. Zephyr seems to have hit the nail with her, so I'll take a leaf outta his book :) Oh, and your other OC shall appear somewhat soon. I had to change him a little, though. Hope you don't eat me for it -nervous laugh-**

**So there you go. Installment five of part one! Yee-haw!**

**I'll update when I get 'round to it. Til then, REVIEW, or I'll pretty much refuse to update.**

**Kidding! I'm not a spoiled brat ;P**

**Thanks for reading, happy writing, and may you all be well and happy until the next chapter :) xx**

**Love love!**

**Cherrie Sakura**

**xoxo**


	6. A1,P1,S6: The Fitting

**Hey, Fictioners.**

**x-x-x**

**IMPORTANT NOTICE: CHECK OUT THIS MONTH'S POLL ON MY PROFILE! Have your say; every vote counts.**

**x-x-x**

**So, I'm here again with another update for Mew Academy. Here's chappie six. I've got to apologise - I think this is the last of the boring chapters; as of chapter seven classes begin, I believe, so the story should start to progress. I wrote chapter eight last night, so I'll try and knock out chapter nine tonight as well. My last exam is next Tuesday, so I can relax a little bit.**

**But I have to growl. And I mean seriously growl. I wasn't going to name names, but I don't feel guilty naming the author here. I swear to God (if he exists), Kyasarin-freakload (nee Vermont Cox) if you send me another nagging PM/review I'll have no choice but to remove Aizuka-san from the story. I do not appreciate your impatience and your selfishness; if other authors, who are no doubt just as frustrated with me as you are, can be patient and compassionate enough to understand my situation with school, then so can you. It's unjustified and unnecessary to send angry messages. I get that this story is taking ages, but if you aren't willing to wait, then stop reading, because I'm not going to put everything on the line and make my life more stressful for a sole impatient author such as yourself.**

**So this is my warning, Kyasarin-freakload. Either chill out, or go away. I like your character, and I want her in my story, and I always admired you as both an author and a creator of OCs. But, believe me, I've got enough characters to work with that, if Aizuka was removed, she could be easily replaced. I don't want that. And for your information, she will make an appearance in chapter eight, and she's one of the eight girls in dorm eighteen. So she has a semi-consistent role at the moment, but I'm unsure right now how involved she will be. **

**It's just a goddamn fictional story, readers! Why get so worked up; there are, like, a MILLION other stories out there on this site that you could read to kill time while waiting for updates. **

**When I took on this project I said the progress would be slow for a few months. I KNOW it's slow, and I KNOW it's teeth-grindingly frustrating waiting so long. **

**Hello-o-o, Arisadonna hasn't updated 'Thirty Kisses' for about six months! **

**Thank you to everyone - most of you - who understood and were willing enough to be patient and even to help me at times. Thank YOU for understanding. I absolutely promise that in a few weeks, I'll be diving into this story; I've got three months of summer break to just write my life away. I've been waiting for those three months since February 08. So, believe me, I am just as impatient as you guys.**

**I sincerely apologise for the grumble; it really only applies to a very very select few who have been pushing it. To all my other readers, I'm so sorry if I offended you; you guys really don't understand how you, writing, and this site holds me together.**

**Thanks xx**

**(Oh, and I also apologise for this chapter. It's not a good one, and I highly dislike it. Just letting you know!)**

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**DISCLAIMER: Anyone who thinks I own Tokyo Mew Mew is an ignoramus.**

**Dedications:**

**Story for MewCuxie12. Chapter for ZephyrFiction and Kish's Kittie.**

Thanks, Zephyr, for just being the awesome guy you are. You make my day, every day. I have much respect for you both as an author and as a person in general, and, in honesty, I'm honoured and proud to be your friend. You're a good friend to have.

And thanks, KK-sama, for always being my inspiration.  
You're my idol and my Tokyo Mew Mew writing Guru. I owe you so much for lighting a confidence in me I never thought I'd be able to keep alight. In all reality, you and KO keep me going; perhaps that's why it feels like we're all part of a secret club. Sometimes I feel like, in a strange way, we fuel each other somehow.  
Words cannot express my gratitude.  
There is so much in my writing that I have you to thank for.  
So thankyou, honestly and sincerely, from the very bottom of my heart.

(Do you want a tissue? LOL)

xoxo

Sorry you guys had to have a not-so-good chapter dedicated to you. I'll do better in future.

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE SIX

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"Okay," Sachi sighed, pulling one half of her short blue hair up into a spiky pigtail to match the other as they stepped into the awaiting elevator. "Hit the seventh button, would ya?"

Akane obediently pressed one finger against the desired button, the doors slid shut and the elevator ascended slowly. Sachi finished tying her hair and relaxed, fixing up her uniform, which she had roughly thrown on and had, until now, looked quite a shambles. Akane waited silently, watching her rearrange herself.

"Better?" Sachi asked, doing up the top button of her shirt and pushing up the large tie, fluffing it a little. Akane nodded shyly, afraid that her new friend would think she had thought her a mess (which, incidentally, she had, but would never have admitted). Sachi grinned and turned her gaze to the little numbers on top of the elevator, which lit up as they passed each level.

"We have four classes today," she said presently, breaking the silence that had fallen. "We're missing English now – thank the lord – and next we have History. Then there's lunch, Math and either Theory or Practical."

She shot a sideward glance at the shy girl in the corner of the lift, whose hands were neatly clasped as she listened carefully. Her shy brown eyes flicked tentatively to the blue-haired girl's face, quietly indicating for her to continue.

"I'm not sure what you'll have to do when we have those classes..." Sachi trailed off awkwardly. Akane didn't reply. She had no idea either, and had never really believed in speaking unless one had something useful or important to say. Since she had neither, she remained silent, preventing herself from coming across as unintelligent, and, unfortunately, sociable.

The lift stopped with a sharp 'ding!' and the old-fashioned bamboo door slid to the side, revealing the wide, bright corridor beyond.

They were on the sixth floor, as a smart silver number on the wall stated when Akane stepped out of the elevator. The floor was shiny cream linoleum, the pale blue walls adorned with photographs of past class groups or individual, high-achieving students. Sachi led the way down the hall, Akane peering curiously at all the closed white doors, their silver plaques announcing what lay inside. As far as Akane could tell, they were all communications and marketing offices. A door towards the end of the corridor was marked with a bright red cross, underneath which was a small sign that read 'Health Centre'. Beside that was the room they were looking for.

"Here we are – the uniform shop!" Sachi said happily, walking through the open door. It had a low roof, Akane noted, her brown eyes sweeping around the long room as she followed her friend. The floor spread away before them, coming to a rest at the far wall, which seemed a long walk away. On their immediate right was a long counter with a cash register, behind which were many shelves, upon which were stacked boxes and boxes of what were – presumably to Akane – shoes.

The room was divided into two halves, defined neatly in the middle by a cream linoleum path. On the right side of the room; the boys' uniform. On the left side of the room; the girls' uniform. The place was teeming with shiny metal racks on wheels and floor-to-roof display stands housing all the different parts of the uniforms.

The place seemed to be empty when the two girls entered, but a rummaging noise from somewhere towards the far wall indicated that the assistant was out the back, possibly in a store room of some sort.

"Hello?" Sachi called, her face hiding any traces of nervousness. Akane stood silently beside her, her hands clasped in front of her.

"Hello?" a muffled female voice returned the call, and a moment later, a woman appeared from a doorway up the back. She was quite short, Akane noticed, and a little plump, with thick dark hair pulled back in a low, messy bun. She made her way towards them from wherever she had come from, her beady dark eyes flicking over them both.

"Can I help you?" the woman asked, sounding a little snappish. She was dressed in a simple red dress with a black cardigan and smart shoes. A pair of oval-shaped glasses hung on a thin cord around her neck. Her long-nailed fingers held a spool of black thread and a bright pink button.

"Yes," Sachi replied merrily, smiling unabashedly at the woman, seemingly unfazed at her distinct hostility. "My friend is new. She needs to be fitted for a uniform."

"I see." The response was short and curt. The woman's piercing black eyes glanced up and down Akane's tiny figure. She regarded them like tiresome children for a moment before obediently putting down the thread and button.

"Very well. Come with me."

She walked quickly away down towards the back of the room, and Akane watched her go, wondering whether she should wait a moment. Sachi jerked her head after the woman, her blue fringe falling in her dark eyes, and the smaller girl jumped, darting after the intimidating woman. Sachi trailed after them lazily, occasionally trailing her pale fingers down the sleeve of a shirt, or along the pleated hem of a skirt.

The back wall, upon reaching it and inspecting it closer, consisted of a long floor-to-roof mirror and two square entrances, with short corridors that cornered away, most likely into the dressing rooms. The beady-eyed woman was standing in the one to the left; the 'Girls' entrance.

"In here," she said shortly, pointing with one sharp fingernail. "First on your left."

Akane hurried along the little corridor, appearing in a small room with eight identical cubicles, with cherry pink curtains for doors and small, full-length mirrors in each. Slipping into the first on the left, like she'd been told, she untied the cord that pinned the curtain out of the way, letting the thick, bright material fall across the doorway, enclosing her in the change room.

She was letting her chocolate eyes drift around the small cubicle when the curtain was suddenly ripped aside and the scary little woman appeared, her arms laden with pink and black clothing.

"Remove your clothes," she commanded curtly. "Leave your undergarments on."

Then she was gone again, and, too scared to anger the lady further, Akane obediently peeled off her pink jumper, white t-shirt and pale jeans, folding them neatly and sitting them on the floor in the corner.

"I… I'm ready…" she called tentatively, wondering if she was supposed to speak or not. This seemed the correct action, however, for the curtain was ripped aside again – Akane had the sudden urge to cover her body, even though there was no one else in the store – and the woman glanced up and down Akane's skinny frame, nodding and muttering to herself. She pulled a tape-measure out of her cardigan pocket and let it fall. It unravelled like a ribbon, causing Akane to smile a little to herself at the fluid motion. The woman didn't seem to notice, or if she did, she didn't care; she took one end of the tape and wrapped it expertly around Akane's tiny waist.

"Arms out."

Our auburn-haired heroine stood in the cubicle, feeling a little stupid, with her arms out like she was pretending to be an airplane, as the scary woman measured her waist, her hips, her thighs, her small bust (she blushed furiously), her shoulders… even her neck. Finally, she was allowed to lower her arms again (she sighed inwardly with relief, as they'd been starting to ache from the strain of holding them still) and the woman instructed her to remain where she was.

"Extra small…" she muttered to herself, whipping the curtain closed behind her. Akane listened to her quick footsteps fading away, and she was left with the silence of the dressing room, wishing she could put some clothes on. She was feeling increasingly uncomfortable, standing alone in nothing but her plain white bra and modest, pale pink panties. She shivered subconsciously, hugging herself nervously, a wave of goose-bumps racing up her arms.

The footsteps returned, and an armful of garments were shoved through the curtain. Bewildered, Akane obediently took them, blinking down at the pile in dismay. A few strands of caramel fell in her brown eyes as she sorted through the clothes, hanging them up on the hooks so she could identify them. Plaid pink and black pleated skirt, pale pink shirt, black v-necked woollen vest, black blazer… She carefully dressed herself, pausing when she came to the dark pink material of the tie. She held it in her small hands, gazing down at it helplessly, wondering how on earth she was supposed to tie it when she'd never seen one in her entire life. The material was soft and silky against her fingertips.

Her chocolate eyes filled with uncertainty, Akane poked her head out from behind the curtain, hoping Sachi would be in the change room to help her. Her gaze fell on the beady-eyed woman, who was sitting on a circular-shaped stool, sewing the pink button onto a skirt with the black thread she'd had in her hands when they'd first entered the shop. Praying the woman hadn't noticed her, Akane tried to slip back into the change room so she could figure out a way of getting Sachi to help her, but the moment she shifted the woman's head snapped up. Stomach falling horribly, Akane watched her put aside what she was doing and stand quickly.

"Come out."

The woman scrutinised her, staring hard at the uniform; where the hem of the skirt fell to, where the waistline sat against her stomach, where the armholes of the vest sat under her arms…

"Where's your tie?" the woman suddenly snapped, and Akane squeaked before quickly holding it out, like she'd been burned. Giving the small girl an odd look, the woman took the silky material.

"You don't know how to tie it?"

Akane shook her head, face red with humiliation. She stared down at her feet, shuffling them nervously. The woman was silent, and when she was brave enough to look up again, the woman's nimble fingers were expertly tying the pink silk into a bow. She held out the finished product and Akane took it meekly, thanking her in an almost inaudible voice. She slipped the material over her head, letting the woman fuss with it, fluffing it up and pulling at it until she stepped back with a satisfied nod.

"If it comes undone, do not let your friend tie it for you."

Akane grabbed her clothing from the dressing room and quickly followed the woman back out into the actual store, wondering why Sachi wasn't allowed to tie her bow for her. Sachi's expression mirrored Akane's when the woman demanded she hand over her own tie. Both girls waited, exchanging a confused glance, while the woman quickly undid the original bow and retied it, handing it back to the stunned blue-haired girl.

"Uh… thanks," Sachi said, unsure of whether she should be thanking the woman or not. Akane reddened again as the beady-eyed lady stared down at her bare, skinny legs. She 'hmm'd to herself for a moment before seeming to make a decision, turning around and climbing up on a small ladder to reach for one of the higher shelves. She returned with what Akane recognised after a moment as a pair of socks, pale pink in contrast to Sachi's jet black, and when she pulled them on, she realised they only reached half way up her calf when stretched out, instead of over her knee, like Sachi's.

"She gives us socks that'll look good on our legs," Sachi whispered in her ear. "She individually decides what would best suit each girl's legs."

"Oh..." Akane replied, nodding her head in quiet bewilderment. The woman pretended not to hear their whispering.

"Shoe size?" she snapped.

"Twenty-two," Akane replied, thankful that she'd been able to remember. The last time she'd bought a pair of shoes had been far too long ago. The school shoes placed on the bench before her were of a simple design; plain black, slip-on, with a neat little heel and a square toe. They were comfortable, with a soft sole. Akane smiled down at them; they were the smartest shoes she'd ever owned. Sachi grinned at her.

"Tiny feet," she commented. "I'm a twenty-three and a half!"

It was all going smoothly, until Akane suddenly realised she was going to have to pay for her uniform. Her stomach dropped away in fear, and she started to panic internally. How was she supposed to pay for her new clothes? She didn't have any money on her, and her parents hadn't exactly provided her with much…

"Your uniform has already been paid for," the lady informed the auburn-haired girl, as if she'd read her mind. "You may go."

Akane quickly thanked the woman, keen to escape the discomfort she'd felt in the intimidating atmosphere of the uniform shop. She followed Sachi back out into the corridor, feeling strange in her expensive new uniform, and they re-traced their steps, walking down towards the elevator.

"Already paid for, huh?" Sachi commented, her voice echoing down the hall. "You're lucky you didn't have to pay on the spot. How'd you get to pay in advance?"

Akane shook her head in wonder, asking herself the exact same question in her mind. Had her family sent money before she'd even gotten her invitation to the school? Had they known about her enrolment and not told her? The whole thing made her stomach churn.

"Oh!" Sachi suddenly exclaimed, causing the shy girl to jump at the outburst. "Wait here a moment, Akane-chan. We forgot to get your stationery!"

The spunky, blue-haired girl suddenly turned on her heel and darted back up the shining corridor, disappearing through a door to her left. Akane was left in the silence once more. Trying not to glance at the gleaming silver numbers on the pale blue doors, she fixed her placid gaze on the linoleum, listening to the faint, rhythmic ticking of a clock somewhere in the hall. She looked up when she heard Sachi's quick footsteps echoing along the hall.

"Here they are," her friend smiled, indicating to the cardboard box in her arms. "The textbooks aren't here, of course, but everything else is. Come on; let's go back to the dorm so we can label everything. No, leave it–!"Akane obediently dropped her arms from where she'd tried to take the cardboard box from Sachi "–I've got it. Press the lift button for me, can you?"

The dormitory was dead silent when the two girls unlocked the door. Shutting it carefully behind them, Akane followed Sachi over to the wooden table, where she dumped the cardboard box with an exaggerated sigh.

"Right. Now that that's done…" The blue-haired girl pulled open the thick flaps and lifted out a stack of plain black exercise books, pre-lined for the students' convenience. After that came a new packet of coloured markers, a pack of pencils, a few long, sharp lead pencils and a pack of multi-coloured pens, and finally, a plain, black and pink plaid pencil case that matched her quilt cover.

"Let's get labelling, or we'll be late for second period," Sachi said, settling down to make herself comfortable at the table. Akane quickly dropped down beside her, and the two set to work writing the new girl's name on all her school supplies.

XX

The bell rang; five sharp, high rings, like musical notes. Akane and Sachi, both engrossed in what they were doing – Akane labelling, Sachi chattering incessantly – jumped in surprise. Sachi glanced at the round clock on the wall, unable to believe it was actually time for class.

"Already?" she whined, her blue pigtails shining in the morning light shining through the window. She groaned and dragged herself up from the table, going to the long wardrobe and pulling aside one of the doors. Akane peered curiously at what was behind. From the few drawers tumbled a mass of different coloured clothing, a mixture of red, white, black and grey, which seemed to be her colours of preference. A pile of clothing had been shoved messily among the mixed-up pairs of shoes tossed roughly in a square tub under the drawers. Jackets and dresses dangled precariously, half-hung from their wire hangers.

Sachi opened the door of a rectangular locker beside the drawers, revealing its contents – a messy stack of books, a few multi-coloured drink bottles, a calculator, a pencil case – and began searching through it, pulling out the things she needed for her class.

Out in the corridor, the hum of conversation and the heavy mass of footsteps grew louder with each passing second, as the number of students walking the hallway as they returned from class multiplied. The shouts of voices echoed past dorm seventeen; the sounds of running feet pounded past. Akane sat quietly at the table, listening to the thundering noise. Suddenly there came the distinct sound of a key being inserted into the lock in the door, and it burst open. A small crowd of girls streamed in, chattering jovially amongst themselves, and the corridor noise was, quite suddenly, in the dorm.

"Hey, Sachi-chan!" Sazuki called, breaking away from the gabble and crossing the room to them, her long brown hair swaying against her back. "Where were you for English?"

"Kikuchi-chan needed to get her uniform," Sachi replied over her shoulder, pulling out a pale denim shoulder bag with red and black tartan material on the pockets. It had a small, plastic, fat red apple clipped to the black zipper, which bounced around, jingling merrily. Obviously it was a decorative bell of some sort.

"Oh," Sazuki said, hazel eyes looking around the dorm, like she'd suddenly remembered something. "I forgot about Kikuchi-san. Hey!" she exclaimed, noticing the shy girl sitting silently at the table, "the uniform looks so _cute_ on you!"

"Thank you," Akane replied politely in a quiet voice, organising her new exercise books into a neat stack. Sazuki dragged open the wardrobe door next to Sachi, immediately engaging her in a fast-paced conversation about what happened that morning in the English class she'd missed. Akane glanced at her section of the wardrobe. It was identical in structure to Sachi's – white wooden drawers above a plastic purple tub, a shelf above for bags, a metal rail for hanging clothes, and a rectangular locker for school things – but, unlike Sachi's, it was much tidier. The drawers were stacked neatly, the shoes in the tub were paired and ordered, the items hanging were carefully arranged in seasonal order. Similarly, the books in her locker were ordered according to subject, the spines of the textbooks facing outwards so she could read their titles.

"Hey, Kikuchi-chan!"

Akane looked around quickly to find excitable Kiseki bounding towards her. Well, bounding wouldn't be the correct word, she reasoned, watching the smaller girl roll across the floor with the confidence and comfortable balance of one who has much ability. The rollerblades that replaced her skinny ankles and feet were white, trimmed with bright colours; orange, pink, blue, green, yellow. She wore a pair of black wrist guards, her bright orange rucksack hanging from her shoulders.

"Hello, Sato-san," Akane greeted, the corners of her lips curving up in a small smile. Kiseki grinned at her, slowed her speed, curved around for a quick stop and jumped up to sit on the table, swinging her rollerblades back and forth above the floor. Her brilliant emerald-green eyes flashed with eagerness and she glanced down at Akane's neat stack of exercise books.

"Are you coming to History?" Kiseki asked, picking up the new, tartan pencil case and unzipping it to examine its contents. Akane nodded.

"Nervous?" the strawberry-blonde asked, a few loose ringlets falling into her face. She hastily swept them back, grinning broadly. Akane nodded again, her cheeks a little pink. Should she be nervous?

"Don't worry, Kikuchi-chan. You've got nothing to worry about," Sazuki told her, placing her books on the table. She started re-packing her bag for the next class. "History's a breeze, really."

"Sato-san, how many times have I told you not to wear the skates inside?" Yume's voice said from behind them. The three girls looked up in surprise. The tall girl was standing by her section of the wardrobe, her silky lavender hair tumbling elegantly down her back. She had a school bag at her feet and was in the process of un-packing and re-packing it. Akane quickly concluded that she'd done that strange teleportation thing to arrive unnoticed.

"Sorry, Yume-san," Kiseki replied, grinning cutely. "It's too much effort taking them off all the time."

"You'll damage the floor," Sazuki said, frowning a little at the vibrant skates. She ran her fingers through her long brown hair, examining a few strands with wistful, hazel eyes. She sighed. "I need another hair cut. My split ends are terrible at the moment…"

"History, right?"

A fifth voice joined their conversation, and Umeko strode over, having just come through the door. She dumped her purple shoulder bag on the floor, looking around at them all with captivating purple-blue eyes.

"Yep," Sachi replied, bouncing over from the wardrobe she'd just shut. She fiddled with one pigtail, fixing it for a moment. Umeko walked away without another word, her thoughts obviously elsewhere.

"Where's Tanaka?" Sachi asked suspiciously, glancing around.

"Probably already there," Sazuki replied, watching Akane packing her tattered duffel bag with the things she would need for class.

"Nerd," Sachi sniggered. Yume shot her a warning look over her shoulder, shutting her locker.

"What? She _is_," Sachi said, shrugging it off. "Who goes to class _this early_? Second bell hasn't even gone yet."

"Maybe the extra ten minutes helps," Sazuki replied, taking Akane's plaid pink pencil case from Kiseki, who had been cautiously sniffing her brand new glue stick, and offering it to the shy girl.

"Thank you," Akane said, dropping it in the bag and zipping it closed.

"Yeah," Sachi snorted, still in conversation about Emiko. "Helps her distance herself from the rest of us."

"Well, she _does _get good results," Umeko contributed, her honey-streaked hair shining beneath her nurse's cap. She joined the small group around the table.

"What's the point of school if you've got no friends to enjoy it with?" Sachi asked skeptically.

"Nakamura-chan, she _has_ friends. You're the only one who has anything against her," Sazuki replied, rolling her hazel eyes.

"Ah, whatever. Don't you think it's odd that everyone else comes back to the dorm between classes, and she doesn't?" Sachi asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"So? It's her preference, isn't it? She doesn't _have _to come back if she doesn't want to," Sazuki argued. Kiseki sat on the table between them with an expression of bewilderment on her face, eyes moving from one girl to the other, like she was watching a tennis match without understanding the rules of the game. Like Kiseki, Akane was sensing the rising tension in the dorm.

Thankfully, as Sachi opened her mouth to argue – quite likely with a retort that would have turned the topic of disagreement from their raven-haired dorm mate to a personal dispute – the bell rang again, signalling the end of the period break between classes.

"Ooo-kay! Let's go!" Kiseki cried enthusiastically. "History class, here we come!"

"Ugh, Kiseki-chan, do you have to be so… 'Girl Power!'… all the time?" Sachi asked, wrinkling up her nose in evident distaste. Akane smiled a little at the small, wild-haired girl. She found their hyperactive dorm mate's infectious optimism quite refreshing, truth being told, and didn't at all mind her positive attitude.

"Come on, guys," Mika called from the door, having just come through the kitchenette. "We're going to be late if you don't stop gas-bagging." She pulled open the door and disappeared into the corridor. Kiseki jumped off the table, skating expertly over to the closing door and grabbing the handle before it could shut.

"Sato-san, you forgot your bag," Akane said quietly, picking it up. Kiseki grinned at her as she walked over and offered it to the other.

"Thanks!"

"Alright," Sachi sighed in resignation. "Let's go join Baka-Emiko in History class."

"Remember what I said, Nakamura-san," Yume said lightly, closing over all the doors to the wardrobe, which had been left open by everyone else. She let her slanted silver eyes fix themselves on Sachi's spunky little figure for a moment, then she shut them and disappeared on the spot.

"Come on, Nakamura," Sazuki called as the three of them – she, Kiseki and Umeko – filed out into the corridor, leaving Akane waiting for her blue-haired friend. Sachi smiled at Akane, her black-brown eyes twinkling a little.

"You ready. Kikuchi-chan?"

Akane nodded a little, even though her mind was somewhat numb with nerves.

"Good. Let's go then!"

They walked out after the trio of girls – two walking, one skating – and joined the crowd of students surging towards the lifts, locking the dormitory door behind them, Akane's heart thudding loudly with every step that walked them closer to her first class at Mew Academy.

* * *

**Yeah... no new OCs in this chapter, and no pre-introduced ones, either, really. Sorry guys! There are two or three introductions next chapter, and another two... or three... in the following, so the OCs are definitely starting to increase exponentially lol. Me and my brilliant basic mathmatics. Please, everyone, just avert your attention from my mathematically-lacking brain, and just be content with the words typed in this story. I'm sure they're much more satisfying lol.**

**For anyone who's interested in the shoe sizes thing; a Japanese woman's 22 is about a five in Australian/US women's shoe sizes... I think the shoes sizing is similar in Australia and America, anyway. So a 23.5 is a 6.5 :)**

**So! Next chapter is Akane's first class at Mew Academy (woot-woot-jigga-jigga!) and then, following that, is lu-u-unch! But I'm not giving anything else away. Although... there ma-a-ay be some testosterone introduced sometime in the not-too-distant future (wink-wink, nudge-nudge). **

**A few personal notes: **

**1. Kitty Kat K.O:** It's hard trying to put your OCs into the story, as they're both Cyniclon. Re'nai is particularly difficult (Passion), but, trust me, I'll work her in. I think your Egyptian Cyniclon (don't want to give too much away here lol) is either going to appear later in Act One, or be a dominant character in Act Two; I've yet to decide what I'll do with her. Gah! You should've given me a Human! LOL.

**2. Kish's Kittie / ZephyrFiction / Kittie Kat K.O: **I'm Capricorn, and my name means 'Mighty'. I'm sure no one else will have any idea what I'm going on about, so it's no biggie writing it here, but it was so much easier than writing three PMs saying the same thing.

**3:** I'd just like to take the opportunity here to shout out to the people on this site who I consider my FF Family; the **immediate family** - DolphinSweetheart 16, Kitty Kat K.O, Kish's Kittie, ZephyrFiction - and the **relatives** (**cousins**, if you will) - Gingeh, Kin(insert random numbers here), ButterflyAngelLover14, Ariana13, and the black-sheep cousin of the family, MikaTheCatHanyou / Sukira Of The Light / TwilightFreak Number1 (I do NOT CARE what you've gone and changed your damn penname to; you're **MIKA-THE-CAT-HANYOU** eternally in my mind, and that's the way you're staying!!!). So, hey guys. A big G'day from Australia! I hope you're all well in your respective worlds :) xxox

**So, now that I've written a letter both at the beginning and ending Author's Notes of this chapter, I think it's time I be off. Thankyou all for reading, and PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review :)**

**I wonder... if anyone actually reads my Author's Notes. A test: IF YOU READ THE AUTHOR'S NOTES; TELL ME IN YOUR REVIEW. I'm going to do a little tally, and see how many readers actually read anything more than the chapter! Bwa-ha-ha-ha-ha! Test your loyalty, my beloved readers!**

**XD**

**Cheerio for now, thanks, as always, and I'll catch y'all in the next update!**

**Review, review, review!**

**Sincerely,**

**Cherrie Sakura**

**xoxo**


	7. A1,P1,S7: A Little History

**I'M FREE-E-E-E-E-E-E-E-E!**

**Hey Fictioners! Guess what?!**

**(long, tension-filled, silence of suspense)**

**... MY EXAMS ARE OVER! Woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-woot-WOOT!**

**No more timetables. No more studying. No more homework. No more preparation lectures. No more practise exams. No more pressure about VCE and ENTERSCORES and university applications and meetings with the Career Counsellor.**

**I. AM. DONE :D**

**And you know what that means?**

**I can write again! Yee-haw! (does a little jig)**

**Yes, friends and fellow author/esses, I am officially FREE of the duties of school, and am now on Summer Holidays! No longer am I a High School student. Never again will I sit a boring Maths class, a stuffy English class. Never again will I have a messy locker, a private school uniform, a year twelve timetable! I've graduated the boring place they call Secondary School, and am free as a bird! (until Dec 15, when we find out if we got into Uni... Hehe)**

**I'M NOT A STUDENT ANYMORE! :o**

**So, Mew Academy is underway! I wrote chapter eight and I'm halfway through chapter nine; wrote it this morning, in fact (Nov 19). So, in celebration of my finishing of school, and the closing of a massive chapter of my life, I'm updating Mew Academy earlier than planned! **

**I don't really have a lot to say today. I'm just in a singing mood :)**

**Enjoy this chaper, dudes and dudettes. You're in the presence of a mighty happy authoress (wide grin).**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew (sobs). I _do _however own Akane, Sachi, Yume, and Emiko ;)**

**Dedications:**

**Story for MewCuxie12. Chapter for Mew-Sahara. Thank you for your support; it really made my day when I was in such a thunderous mood in the last update :)**

* * *

ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE SEVEN

* * *

Akane stood in the long, low-roofed, blue-grey-tile-floored, brightly lit corridor, students of all ages passing her by. She let her warm, chocolate brown eyes drift across the busy hall to the wall of windows opposite her, through which she could see far across the vast green campus and down the neat, straight tram tracks, which disappeared into the distance.

She'd followed Sachi and the others across the glass-walled bridge from the pink castle-like building to the mint green one; where their classes were held. As they'd crossed, she'd been daring enough to glance out the glass wall to the tram station below them, and her stomach had dropped away. She'd snapped her head back up again, taking deep breaths to help the nausea subside. Then they'd reached the safety of the sturdy tiled floor of the green castle, and she'd been okay again.

_Don't do that again, Kikuchi, _Akane had lectured herself sternly, glancing back over her shoulder at the horrid little 'bridge'.

Beside her, Sachi was checking the class list pinned up next to the clean white door. In the middle of the door was a little silver plaque, which read '9B'. Trailing one brightly painted fingernail down the long list, her blue-haired friend found something that was apparently to her satisfaction, for she turned to the shy girl, beamed and said, "Ready?"

Akane, of course, nodded, despite feeling anything _but_ ready, and suddenly found herself following the confident, spunky girl into the classroom, sticking close behind her like a shadow. The door shut behind them.

A sea of faces looked in their direction, some surprised, some curious, some expectant. Many uninterested. Most then looked away again, apparently unfazed by the appearance of someone new to the school. There was no teacher, Akane concluded after glancing quickly around the room. The loud buzz of morning chatter confirmed this; no class in Japan would _ever _be this loud if there was a teacher present.

"Hmm..." Sachi said thoughtfully, pondering something. She turned to the caramel-haired girl, who stood close behind her with her hands clasped in front of her, in a manner that was both polite and nervous at the same time.

"What is it?" Akane asked quietly, her voice barely more than a whisper against Sachi's ear.

"I don't know where your seat is... Kikuchi... Kikuchi..." Sachi trailed off, speaking more to herself than to her small companion. "Hey! You'll be next to Sazuki... Kikuchi; Kinomoto... I don't know who else you'll be next to..." she waved to Sazuki, who had just sat down at her desk, then turned to Akane. "Just up there... See where Sazuki-chan is?"

"Thanks," Akane said, allowing a small, grateful smile to grace her features. She held her duffel bag close to her and walked quickly between the nearest rows of desks, cheeks blushing a little as the occupants sitting at them stared at her curiously.

"Hello again," Sazuki greeted congenially, smiling in a friendly manner. "So we'll be desk buddies, huh?"

"Yeah..." Akane replied softly, sitting down gently and quietly taking out her book and pencil case from her bag. Sazuki watched her thoughtfully, wondering why it was the girl was so shy.

_Maybe she just doesn't like us... We're pretty rowdy..._

Meanwhile, the girl in contemplation gazed silently around the large room. There were – if she calculated correctly – approximately fifty students in the class; five long rows of desks that stretched away to the back of the classroom. Each was neatly lined up with all the others, and they were all exactly the same length. Her brown eyes flicked along one row, from the start of the row to the end, her mind mentally counting each desk. Ten. Ten in the first row. That meant ten in the second, and also in the third. And the fourth and the fifth. So, fifty students.

Needless to say, it was by far the biggest class she'd ever seen in her life. When she bravely mentioned this to Sazuki (for the girl looked as though she were sitting through an awfully awkward silence and she thought she would relieve her of this) the brunette smiled in pleasant surprise, nodding a little.

"I guess it _is _quite a big class, when you think about it," she agreed, her hazel eyes sweeping around the room. "But this is only half the girls in our grade. There are four ninth grade classes. Both female classes have fifty students. It's the same for the boys... There are a hundred of them, too."

Akane sat in a stunned silence.

The door opened, and through it strode a tall, pale man, his violet-cum-storm-grey hair threaded in a long, neat plait down his back. His skin was white as chalk, his wise, steely eyes gazing sternly at his chattering students for a second.

The moment he walked in, the noise died away. He had an air of intimidation about him, Akane mused immediately, feeling the atmosphere in the room shift from relaxed to tense. The tall man was slender, in an almost elegant fashion, and he wore a simple, dark grey kimono, the obi around his waist a rich, deep navy.

As the tall man crossed the front of the room to the teacher's desk in the middle, the students stood up, as a sign of respect. Akane quickly pushed out her chair, flushing red at her slight lateness. The man's steely eyes swept over the class. He inclined his head a little.

"Sit. Kikuchi, are you in here?" he asked, his voice deep and serious. Akane stood silently, staring straight ahead at the wall, as everyone else sat down around her. She felt multiple pairs of eyes on her, the sole figure still standing, and hushed whispers hissed around the room.

"Come forward," the man said. So she did. Up closer, she allowed herself to quietly examine his features while he looked for something in the black leather briefcase he had carried in with him. His skin was almost pure white – unnervingly white. His eyes were slanted and somewhat stern. His hair was thick in its plait. The hands that searched the briefcase were long-fingered and surprisingly elegant. Almost feminine.

"Here," the man said, holding out a thick textbook entitled 'A Mew History, for Ninth Graders; Third Edition'. It was plain black with a bright blue heading, and the white silhouettes of a normal girl and what she assumed was a Cyniclon – it had pointed ears like the teacher standing before her, who she also assumed was an alien.

"Thank you," Akane said, taking the book from him.

"My name is Pai," he explained, his voice somewhat lacking in dynamics. Akane bowed politely.

"Kikuchi Akane."

"Yes, I was told about you," Pai replied, gazing at the girl thoughtfully, an unreadable expression on his face. It seemed to be one of mild curiosity, but he looked like he was staring at a particularly difficult math equation that he simply couldn't answer, no matter how many different methods he applied trying to solve it. It unsettled her. "You may take your seat."

As Akane thankfully hurried back to her desk beside Sazuki, the elfin man addressed the class.

"Turn to chapter two, page thirty-four. We'll continue where we left off last lesson. Kikuchi, you'll have to catch up in your own time."

There was a great rustling as the many students opened their textbooks, Akane included. She glanced down at the page, which had a bold heading that read 'Great Battles in Mew-Cyniclon History', and depicted a large field swarmed with an enormous mass of what looked like humans, one half dressed darkly, one half dressed lightly. The caption underneath read, 'The meeting of humans and Cyniclons on Victory Hill in countryside Britain, on May 6, 2005.'

Akane opened her exercise book, took up a blue pen and dated the page, preparing herself to take notes. Beside her, Sazuki was doing the same. She glanced up, her hazel eyes flicking to catch Akane's gaze, and she pulled a face, her expression one of exaggerated boredom. Akane managed a small smile in return and she looked to the front as the teacher started speaking.

"In the short month we've been studying Mew-Cyniclon history, we've covered a few major battles. For Kikuchi-san's sake, would someone recite which these were?"

"Tokyo," a voice said immediately from up the back. The tall man inclined his head slightly in affirmation.

"Very basically, yes. What else?"

"New York...?" a different girl asked, her voice a little bashful, as if she were afraid she'd get it wrong.

"Correct, but there's another that comes between them..." Pai said, steely eyes glancing around at his students. "Can anyone remember which it is? Tanaka-san?"

Akane turned her head quickly, chocolate eyes finding jet-black-haired Emiko sitting up towards the back of the room, her hand raised in the air, a look of determined knowing on her face. The shy girl realised almost immediately that she'd been the girl who had answered earlier.

"Shanghai," Emiko stated, pride ringing in her voice.

"Correct," Pai said. "And after New York? Sato-san, would you like to answer this?"

Kiseki, who had been drawing monkeys in her workbook, glanced up in surprise, a guilty grin spreading across her small face, emerald eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Uh... Tokyo again?" she asked hopefully, clearly not paying any attention to the class. Pai frowned sternly at her and the wide smile faded a little.

"Yes," he replied, and her face broke out in a huge beam of pride.

"Sazuki-chan, I got it right!" she called out happily, and the girls broke out in laughter. She blushed a little, realising how silly she looked. Pai raised one eyebrow at her, clearly bemused.

"If you paid attention, Sato-san, you would probably find you would get it right a lot more," he said loudly over the giggles. "Settle, girls. This is no time for distraction; turn your History brains back on. Come now, think. Which battle came after the second Tokyo attack?"

The class obediently fell silent, but no one answered. He looked around at them, somewhat hopefully, then glanced up the back, steely eyes filled with resignation.

"Tanaka-san?"

"Great Britain."

"Correct again. Now, there is one more that we studied; surely you will remember which it was – we covered it just last week," the tall man went on, clasping his hands behind his back, a gesture that served to make him seem even more important and impressive.

"Oh!" another girl gasped, flinging her hand in the air. "Was it Egypt?"

"Yes, thankyou, Katsukara-san. Though, where in Egypt was the battle held? It wasn't simply 'Egypt'."

The girl faltered, putting her hand down quickly. Akane imagined her embarrassment and felt sorry for the girl, being put on the spot like that. Their teacher seemed to sigh a little, before glancing up the back.

"Cairo," said Emiko's voice. He nodded and began pacing slowly.

"Exactly. So, in order, the attacks were: Tokyo, Shanghai, New York, Tokyo again, countryside Great Britain, Cairo," Pai said. "Can anyone remember how the attacks came about?"

There was another, long silence. Without even turning as he gazed out the window, he said, "Tanaka-san?"

"... No, sir... I can't remember. Sorry," Emiko replied, her voice suddenly quieter. Somewhere behind Akane, someone snickered. Akane had a sneaking suspicion it was Sachi. Rather than appearing disappointed, however, as the caramel-haired girl had expected, Pai seemed quite relieved that Emiko didn't know something he had asked.

"We'll re-cap that then," he said, taking a marker out of his briefcase and walking around the desk to the whiteboard. "Now, the pattern that resurfaced with each new attack was that they were all aimed at one of the Earth's largest, most populated and most thriving cities. Why do you think that was?"

There was a sort of snort from somewhere behind Akane, and someone said, voice laden with sarcasm, "Isn't that kind of obvious?"

"How so, Miwako-san?" Pai asked smoothly, his grey eyes resting impassionately on the girl's face. The girl who had spoken, Miwako-san, stared right back at him, an expression of wry amusement on her face. Her silvery hair was tied in a ponytail at the nape of her neck. She reached up, her silvery-grey eyes suddenly surveying the teacher almost warily, and ran her fingers through one of the two thick streaks of black hair that framed her face, stark against the silver. She waited a moment, as if pondering whether she should answer him or not, then shrugged her shoulders a little.

"The bigger the city, the more people who live in it," she said, sounding bored and logical at the same time. "The more people there are, the more people will be injured in the attacks. Isn't that the intention of every war? Hurt as many of the enemy as you can?"

"It's logical," Pai replied, after a moment's pause. "However, it is not correct."

The girl, Miwako-san, frowned distastefully and sunk lower in her seat, worsening her already lazy posture. She took up a pacer and began drawing smooth lines in a sketchbook resting on the table. It was quite a defensive, rebellious gesture.

"What Miwako-san said was a correct conclusion to come to; generally in war the objective is to defeat the opposition through casualties and injuries. In the case of the Mew-Cyniclon wars, however, the intention of the attackers, the Cyniclons, was much more about the resources."

A dumb silence followed this statement and their teacher surveyed them all with a displeased expression.

"The resources being," he continued, a trace of irritation hitting his voice, "natural minerals in the Earth's surface that could have been used in the production of weapons and the development of Chimera Anima, not to mention food and water supplies."

Again he was met by a silence. Turning away from the class, the tall man strode to the whiteboard, clicking off the lid of his marker.

"We've covered all the original Earth battles. The typical, Mew-Cyniclon battles – the ones that made human history. Today we're going to look at the next phase in history. The events that changed both mankind and alien-kind altogether," he paused for effect. Akane watched him with wide brown eyes. "In the first decade of the twenty-first century, there was a great war of unexpected proportions and results. Before we look into it, does anyone know where this war was, who was involved, or what happened? ...Yes, Tanaka-san?"

"Was it the epic, three-month battle that raged between humans and the combined efforts of the Cyniclons and the Sarzoids, when the Mew forces were defeated for the first time?" Emiko asked. Pai inclined his head.

"Indeed it was. Can you continue, Tanaka-san?"

"Well... didn't the Cyniclon-Sarzoid army defeat the Mew forces, and wasn't the Earth in the control of the two alien races for a few years?"

"Correct. Do you know what happened next?"

"The Sarzoids turned on the Cyniclons."

"Also correct. Yes, after three years of peaceful ruling, the Cyniclons' greedy cousins grew impatient," Pai explained, writing notes on the board. "They wanted the Earth to themselves, so a war broke out among the Cyniclons and the Sarzoids. The feuding lasted for seven months, much of the Earth's land being damaged in the battles. Tanaka-san, do you know what happened after these seven long months?" Pai asked, raising one eyebrow curiously.

"The Cyniclons joined forces with the humans."

"Yes. Outnumbered and overpowered, the Cyniclons realised the little chance they had of defeating their cousins. Realising the mistake they had made in turning against the humans, they proposed a reconciliation between the two races; a signed agreement by the chief Cyniclon leaders, and the greatest political powers in the human race, declaring that the two races would fight together for a common cause – to overthrow the Sarzoid army and restore peace to the Earth," Pai said, his marker squeaking against the gleaming white panel as he wrote. "Can anyone tell me how long the war raged between the newly allied races and the Sarzoid army?"

Apparently, no one could. Or, Akane reasoned, thinking about it, if they _did _know, they simply didn't wish to say. Shoulders slumping a little, Pai said, without turning from the board, "Tanaka-san?"

"Almost a year, sensei."

"Correct, as always, it seems. Yes, for exactly eleven months and seventeen days, the two forces battled on the many lands of the Earth, until finally, in the early hours of January 9, the Sarzoid armies were ordered to pull out, and, all across the globe, their great ships took to the sky. What happened next?"

"Harmony Day. January 11," Emiko said promptly, without even waiting to be asked.

"I had hoped one of the other students might have been able to answer that, Tanaka-san," Pai said with a frown, lecturing her somewhat. "Harmony Day is one of the world's most widely celebrated international holidays. What was so important about this day, anyone _aside _from Tanaka? Kinomoto-san?"

Akane looked over in surprise, for Sazuki had bravely raised her hand into the air. She lowered it before she spoke.

"From that day onwards the Cyniclons and the humans were allies," she said. "And from that day both lived harmoniously on the Earth, the Cyniclons being accepted into the human society."

"Exactly. The first Harmony Day marks the change of the world. If that day had never been established, the Cyniclons would not be a part of modern society, and our culture would not be as advanced," Pai told the class, gazing around at them seriously. "Right. Your title for today: 'the Sarzoid Saga and Harmony Day'. Make sure you copy down all these notes – they will be important for upcoming tests. Now..."

And so, without a clue of what she was learning, or what anything even meant, Akane sat through the first of what would be many classes at Mew Academy, her chocolate eyes following the strange, pale-skinned, elfin man as he spoke, and she started to learn about the magical history of a world she never even knew existed.

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**Hmm. I'd forgotten this chapter was my favourite. I really enjoyed writing it, at the time. It was a good while ago now, though haha.**

**So, there's a bit of background about the time and context of this story. You guys have a little bit of an insight into how everything came to be now :) This chapter was the most fun; I could be so creative with it. Tee hee!**

**Naw-w-w, Harmony Day. (giggles). It's so cute! **

**Oh, and guess what? EVERYONE said they read the Author's Notes! Lawl! Thanks guys! You're seriously great people. It really made me smile :)**

**Those who haven't visited my profile yet, don't forget there's a poll there. It'll be up for ages, though. So don't panic or anything. The poll is supposed to give me an insight into the characters you guys like/dislike... but so far, it's not really helping me! Haha. Everyone's picking Akane! Lol!**

**I'll let you guys go now (I'm going for a celebratory morning tea with my life-long best friend at 11am (it's 10.25am in Melbourne btw), so I should be off!).**

**Thankyou everyone for reading, and double thanks with caramel drizzle and pink sprinkles for those who review.**

**(button's right there!)**

**Much love, always,**

**Cherrie S.**

**xoxo**


	8. A1,P1,S8: Its Lunchtime!

**Hey everyone.**

**So, I've got to apologise again for not updating. But, frustratingly, life's still busy, and it doesn't seem to be getting any better, like I'd hoped it would :( Actually, this last month has been hell for me. I won't go deep too into that explanation, but it was all stress over an incident that happened in my relationship with my boyfriend, and we recently broke up (like, yesterday) because of it. Plus, I was away for two weeks there, so I couldn't write then, and then we had Christmas! So, once New Year's and my birthday are out of the way, I'll HOPEFULLY (fingers crossed) be able to write more... let's pray the inspiration to write is still there :(**

**So this chapter is basically for LoneHanyou Mika-Zuki (is that another new penname?! XP) for asking me so nicely to update this story. To be honest, I really didn't have much intention of returning here for a while, so you can thank her for reminding me of the dedication I have to this site :) But I'm skipping all the dedications and crap today. This chappie's also for Tomoyo Kinomoto, for reviewing three times last update! XD Thanks for that!**

**Warning. This chapter is crap. Just letting you all know, I hate it. Seriously.**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE EIGHT

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Lunch at Mew Academy was an intense experience.

When the bell for the end of History rang, there was the instant scraping of chairs and slamming of books. Pai-sensei hadn't even finished speaking yet. Akane glanced around with wide, confused eyes, her pen still in her thin fingers. It was like the moment the bell went, all the other students switched their 'class' brains off and left, without any regard for the teacher. She quickly started packing away her own things, feeling a little sorry for the tall man standing by the whiteboard, his face distinctly disappointed when he realised none of his students were listening anymore.

"Come on, Kikuchi-chan," Sachi said, appearing beside her desk. "Time for lunch!"

They joined Sazuki in the small, congested crowd around the classroom door and slowly flowed out into the tightly packed hallway. There were students everywhere, all travelling in the same direction – back towards the pink castle. Akane hugged her duffel bag close to her chest as she was jostled around by the rowdy students. Shouts and calls echoed up the corridor, the volume of all the many loud conversations like a buzz.

"Nakamura-san?" she asked her blue-haired friend, who paused mid-sentence in her conversation with Sazuki and smiled obligingly.

"Where _is _the lunch hall?" Akane asked, stumbling a little as someone pushed past her. Sachi smiled.

"It's downstairs," she replied. "It takes up most of the first floor – you can't miss it."

"Don't worry," Sazuki added. "Stick with us and you'll be fine."

They resumed their conversation and Akane fell into step behind them, letting her gaze wander over the sea of students around her. There were girls and boys of all ages, with multi-coloured hair and widely varying hairstyles. There were big bags and small bags – smart bags and cute bags and novelty bags with famous characters on them. Somehow, every single student managed to wear their uniform differently to everyone else, whether it was just the socks or the shoes or their hair ribbons. It was quite amazing, really.

At the end of the corridor, the girls flowed to the right with the crowd, rather than going straight ahead over the bridge, the way they had come from the dorm that morning. Off the left side of the corridor, directly in the middle, were two enormous, impressive escalators; one heading down and one coming up. They were wide enough for about twenty students to fit across each.

Akane found herself squashed right over on the left side, against the rolling black banister. She gripped it gently with her fingers as she stood on the moving ribbon of metal, grabbing it more tightly if she stumbled (which she found happened quite often, as the mass of impatient students around her didn't ease up on the jostling when they hit the escalator). About halfway down she peeked tentatively over the rail and glimpsed the sea of students surging around on the floor below them before quickly pulling back her head when the nausea hit again. She looked over to the other escalator, which was, comically, completely empty. Suddenly, Akane realised she'd somehow lost Sachi and Sazuki. The faces around her were unrecognisable; her friends had disappeared. Alarm pierced her quickly beating heart and she went up on her tip-toes, trying to spot either of them in the crowd.

She was distressed and tearful when she reached the bottom of the escalator. No longer worried about being pushed around by the other hasty students, she stumbled onto the shiny tiled floor, trembling a little and clutching her bag. It was like she was back on the Tokyo Central train station platform; there was a thick swarm of various-aged students milling around her, each person heading somewhere with purpose. Her heart fell as she mused miserably that she was the only person who didn't know where they were going.

A single tear slipped down her cheek, cold against her warm skin.

Out of nowhere, someone stumbled into the frightened girl, causing her to stumble herself. A pair of arms shot out and caught her shoulders, the person's hands strong yet gently reassuring in a strange way. For a single moment, Akane felt like it didn't matter that she was completely lost in an enormous room full of people she didn't know.

The moment quickly passed, though, and she became distressed once more.

"Sorry," a lighthearted male voice said, almost lazily, his tone touched with amusement. Akane glanced up nervously at her tall assailer-cum-rescuer with frightened yet inquisitive brown eyes. The boy gazed back casually with striking sky blue eyes, his shoulders confidently sturdy, his profile lean and comfortably muscular. His form was neatly defined under the fitted boys' uniform, which he wore sort of messily, with his tie somewhat loosened and his shirt half un-tucked. A mass of sun-kissed, golden hair tumbled over his pale forehead, messily ruffled, though not like someone had tousled it, like it simply fell that way.

Akane shied away from his grasp, wriggling uncomfortably backwards.

"Hey – you okay?" the boy asked, his blue eyes focusing more closely on her pale, panic-stricken face. His blonde eyebrows knitted in a frown of concern. Akane wanted to kick herself.

_Why couldn't he have just kept walking?_

She ripped her eyes from his face, casting them to the floor, unable to bear looking at him. Why on earth was he so concerned? He didn't even know her.

"It seems she's unwilling to speak, Yuki," a silky male voice commented calmly. Her gaze flicked up before she could control it, her chocolate eyes drinking in the tall, impossibly thin form of another boy, his uniform absolutely immaculate in contrast to the first. His skin was chalky white, his eyes large and slanted, gleaming burnt amber, like glowing coals, his pointed ears the trademark Cyniclon elf-shape. His long, silky seaweed-green hair was tied in a low, impeccably neat ponytail. He stood tall and confident, with unbelievably perfect posture, and the elegance of one so poised, he was almost feminine. Certainly his slender, toned body betrayed slightly womanly characteristics, but his serenely serious expression and quietly sophisticated aura held the distinct qualities of a highly distinguished male.

He regarded her with a cool, wistful look, his amber eyes smoldering discerningly. She faltered and forced her gaze back to the floor.

"Come," the silky-voiced Cyniclon said, drifting away from the bottom of the escalator. The blue-eyed boy seemed momentarily torn between helping the small, fragile-looking girl before him, and joining his friend.

Akane made it easier for him. Before he could speak again, she slipped into a slight gap in the crowd, disappearing so quickly the blonde boy was alarmed.

"Hey!" she heard him call, but she didn't turn back. She'd held him up enough already.

Pressed in on either side by chattering bodies she didn't recognize, she allowed her grief at losing Sachi and Sazuki to wash over her once more. For a few moments she simply drifted along with the current of the massive crowd, then, out of nowhere, a hand grabbed her sleeve and she was pulled several feet through the throng, until she found herself standing with Sachi and Sazuki.

"There you are!" Sachi cried over the loud buzz of noise. "We lost you!"

Akane smiled weakly with relief, a fuzzy warmth washing over her. Sachi's face fell at the smaller girl's pale-faced expression.

"You didn't think we'd left you, did you?" she asked in surprise. Akane blushed, embarrassed. Sachi grinned and gently wiped away the cool tear that had frozen in its journey down her cheek. "Don't be silly, Kikuchi-chan."

"Aww!" Sazuki said, wrapping her arms around the small girl's shoulders. "She's so sweet! Don't worry, Kikuchi-san – we'd never abandon you like that."

"Come on," Sachi said, taking her hand and leading the way. "Let's go meet the others. I'm starving!"

"You know, Sachi," Sazuki said congenially as they weaved in and out of the crowd, "I like this one. I think we'll keep her."

Sachi grinned at Akane, whose lips curved up obediently in a small, pleased smile, and squeezed her small hand a little.

"So…" Sazuki said, a few moments later. "Where are the others?"

Akane looked up from where she'd been watching their feet walking against the marble tiled floor and gasped as her breath caught in her chest.

The cafeteria was unlike anything she'd ever seen before. She didn't even know if she could call the area before her a 'room' – it was just so enormous. They were standing at the edge of a massive – truly _massive ­_– circular expanse set lower in the ground than where they stood. There were hundreds of tables dotted in the circular space, at which sat many, many students, in little groups of three or four. There were steps built around the eating area, leading down to it, and in the very middle was a bubbling fountain in a round marble bowl. Surrounding the circular area built off all the walls were dozens of fast-food chains. Well, not necessarily fast-food, she realized, looking closely at a couple of salad and juice bars nearby. Just a wide variety of food.

"Aha!" Sachi suddenly exclaimed, causing Akane to jump, startled out of her reverie. "There they are!"

Akane followed her outstretched arm in the direction it was pointing, and wondered how on earth she had missed 'them'. Skating around a table over on their right, at an unbelievably daring speed, was Kiseki, her strawberry blonde hair streaming behind her like a cape. The people sitting at the tables around her were sending her disgruntled glances as she whizzed past.

Sachi grinned widely and skipped down the steps, practically dancing between the tables to reach her friends, her spiky blue pigtails bouncing on her head. Sazuki and Akane followed at a slower pace, joining the few tables that seated their dorm mates.

"Hiya, Akane-chan!" Kiseki greeted merrily, skating tight circles around the stunned auburn haired girl until poor Akane felt positively dizzy.

"Hello… Sato-san," she murmured, hugging herself a little as the wind Kiseki whipped up blew her hair out of her face. Giggling, the crazy little girl skidded to a stop, her emerald eyes twinkling, a cheeky grin spreading across her small face.

"Kiseki-chan, I think you're making her sick," Sazuki commented with a tired sigh. She grabbed a fistful of Kiseki's uniform and dragged her – rolling and spluttering her protests – away from a relieved Akane, who turned her attention to the people sitting around the table.

Sazuki had led Kiseki over to a table, the two of them joining Umeko and Mika, who were sharing a conversation, their voices low, their eyes focused on each other. Akane recognized others from the two shared dormitories, too; at the next table sat the black haired, golden-eyed pixie-like alien and a seemingly significantly empty seat, opposite who sat two girls from dorm eighteen, whom Akane had yet to meet. All three were silent, and there was a strange aura around the table, like they were all uncomfortable sitting there.

Sachi and Akane sat down at the empty table beside the trio. Akane glanced up a little awkwardly. Sachi flashed her a wide grin.

"What do you want for lunch?" she asked, dark eyes sparkling merrily, as they always seemed to. Akane blushed, wishing she'd prepared an answer.

"I usually get ramen, or sushi," Sachi added, tapping her pointed chin thoughtfully with one long, glitzy, carefully decorated nail. "I think today I'll have ramen… but then again, sushi is good… sushi is always good. That's the good thing about it, don't you think? Sushi is good for any occasion… and it's never a disappointment, don't you think?"

Akane blinked stupidly. Sachi's sentences were rapidly speeding up.

"Uh…" Akane faltered, not knowing how to respond to such an escalation of speech.

"I think I'll get sushi after all," Sachi decided. She smiled happily at Akane. "Thanks!"

"But…" Akane trailed off as the babbling, blue-haired girl rose from the table.

"Oh!" Sachi gasped, wheeling on the spot, "I forgot! What do you want for lunch, Kikuchi-chan?"

"Oh… uh…" Akane hit herself internally. She was such a dithering mess!

"I'll get you some sushi, too, okay? I understand how difficult it is to decide with so many options! I'll surprise you with a flavour!" Sachi laughed. She skipped away happily.

Akane watched her with wide, chocolate eyes filled with admiration, until her stark blue hair disappeared into the swarming crowd. To be so confident and carefree all the time…

_She must be very happy…_

She let her gaze wander around the hall for a moment, drinking in the talk and laughter – the general hum – of student life at the school. It was an overwhelming experience for the shy girl, whose entire school back home had consisted of no more than sixty students. She mused that the cafeteria of Mew Academy probably contained more people than her hometown and the next town over put together.

The idea of so many people all attending _one _school was nothing short of mind-blowing to the poor, intimidated girl.

Without thinking, her gaze turned to the tables that seated her dorm mates. And locked onto the disturbingly bright, confronting golden eyes of the black-haired, white-skinned Cyniclon. Her small, perfect, blood red lips curved up in a smile that seemed almost sinister, though Akane was sure it wasn't.

The Cyniclon held out one chalk-white, slender hand expectantly. Unsure, Akane obediently took it with one of her own small hands, shaking it weakly. This must have satisfied the strange Cyniclon, for she unclasped their hands and pulled hers back, placing it over the other, where they rested in her lap.

"Momoka," she said, her voice silky, like the tall, elegant boy's had been.

"K-Kikuchi…"

"Yes," Momoka replied loftily. "I know."

While the Cyniclon's pre-knowledge of Akane's existence had many logical explanations, the shy girl couldn't shake the feeling there was something strange about the bird's-nest-haired, golden-eyed alien, who had fixed a startlingly intense gaze upon her small, heart-shaped face. It was like she was trying to find something in our nervous heroine, but Akane wasn't sure of what it could be, or if she even possessed it at all. It was very unnerving.

After a moment, the Cyniclon seemed to sense the girl's discomfort, for she ripped her concentrated gaze away almost lazily, letting it drift absently over the vast cafeteria.

Akane thankfully turned her chocolate eyes to the two other girls, both of whom seemed disinterested in the scene that had played out before them. One, evidently the elder of the two, was tall and pale, with tresses of black and white streaked hair that tumbled to her elbows in natural waves. Her fringe and bangs were held out of her face, pulled back by a deep red headband. Her golden-amber eyes were fixed on the open-pages of a small novel propped up against the salt-and-pepper shakers, her red-nailed fingers deftly and absently lifting delicate mouthfuls of rice, seaweed and wasabi from a square, china plate of sushi sitting on the table before her, with a set of sleek, crocodile-scale patterned chopsticks. She didn't seem to even realize she was eating; she was so engrossed in her book.

The other, small and painfully thin, sat hunched forward in her seat, so her chin-length blood red hair fell over her face. She had a long, messily layered side fringe that covered most of her face except for one eye, which shone a dull, emotionless aquamarine. She had a small nose and a little mouth pulled into a strict, straight line. Her uniform didn't fit properly; it hung off her small frame a little baggily, even though it could only have been the smallest size. There was no food in front of her, but as Akane blinked slowly at her, contemplating her in a quietly curious fashion, the single visible aquamarine eye flicked up quickly to her face, then, just as quickly, flicked back to the table, where it remained gazing for the rest of lunch.

"Kikuchi-chan!"

She looked up. Sazuki and Kiseki were beckoning her to join them. Wondering whether she should oblige to the will of the girls waving to her from the table, or whether she should just wait loyally for her friend, who was also very kindly bringing her lunch, Akane sat still for a moment, her face moulded into a troubled expression.

"Akane-chan, Sachi won't be back just yet," Sazuki called. "Come sit with us for a moment."

Unable to find reason to argue against that point, Akane obediently rose from the seat and walked to their table. Kiseki immediately skated over to the table next to them, grabbing an empty seat and dragging it away, ignoring the indignant girls' protests.

"Here," she said, beaming as she dropped back into her own seat, rolling her multi-coloured skates back and forth along the marble tiled floor. Akane sank into the seat, smiling a little to the dorm girls at the table.

"How did you find History class, Kikuchi-chan?" Sazuki asked, relieving every single one of the girls, except for Kiseki, who was cutely oblivious to the awkward silence that had settled when Akane had joined them.

"It was… interesting," Akane replied quietly, gazing at her clasped hands, which were resting in her lap. "I… I learned a lot."

"Really?" Sazuki asked, genuinely surprised. "No offense, but _how_? Pai-sensei is such a bore!"

She laughed, and Kiseki giggled with her. Umeko allowed a wry smile, but Mika didn't seem to be paying any attention. Her golden-flecked brown eyes were sweeping around the room, searching for something. She appeared casual, but Akane sensed a restrained urgency in her gaze. She watched the brown and violet haired girl for a moment, before turning her attention back to the three others, in case Mika was offended that she was staring at her. She didn't want to appear rude.

"… and he always goes on about the social and racial prejudices between Cyniclons and Humans," Sazuki was agreeing to whatever Umeko had said.

"Does he think we don't know that?" Kiseki asked, rolling her brilliant emerald green eyes. She really was as cute as a button. She pushed a stray, wayward ringlet from where it continually fell in her face and tucked it behind her ear. A few moments later it had sprung back into place, so she gave up and tried to ignore it.

"… Tanaka-san knows a lot about History," Akane said bravely. The three glanced at her, Sazuki quickly masking her surprise at witnessing the first offered contribution to a conversation from the shy, auburn-haired girl with a nod of her head. Kiseki didn't even seem to realize. Umeko didn't seem to care.

There was a derisive snort from behind them, and Akane twisted a little to look up. Sachi was standing beside their table with a tray laden with typical Japanese cuisine. She rolled her dark brown eyes.

"Tanaka-baka knows a lot about _everything_," she corrected, setting the tray down as the others stacked theirs up to make room. "She makes it her business to, so she can show off to everyone else about how much she _knows. _Unfortunately, Tanaka-baka has no life, so while she pretends to be a know-it-all to show off, we know its really because she has nothing better to do with her time."

"Sachi! You're getting very nasty, you know," Sazuki scolded with a tight frown. "How do you know that's why Tanaka-_san_-" she emphasized the respectful honorifics "-is so intelligent? She could just study because she wants to be the best student she can."

"And who does that?" Sachi pointed out. "People with no lives."

"You'll offend someone one day, and you'll get yourself in big trouble, Nakamura," Sazuki sighed, nibbling a strawberry flavoured pocky. Sachi rolled her eyes.

"I'll deal with that when the day comes," she replied.

"Where is Tanaka-san, anyway?"Kiseki asked, looking around, as if to spot her among the ridiculously huge sea of students. She gave up after about two seconds. Well, Akane mused, she either gave up, or lost interest. She seemed quite a distractible girl.

"Two guesses," Sachi muttered, sorting out her sushi and Akane's. While she set up their meals, Akane dug in her school bag for her purse.

"Probably in the library," Sazuki answered Kiseki's question. "She likes to study during lunch, remember?"

"Oh, yeah!" Kiseki agreed, beaming. When Sachi noticed what Akane was doing, she gave a sharp exclamation and shut the bag, shaking her head.

"No, Akane-chan; it's your first day, and it's my shout," she said firmly, her dark eyes serious. Akane faltered, blinking, her fingers quietly searching still. Sachi slapped the bag.

"Stop it! Naughty Akane! I'm not going to let you pay me for your lunch today, so take your hand out of the bag," she said sternly. Akane blushed furiously, obediently sliding her hand out of her bag. Sachi carefully closed it and pushed it under Umeko's seat, where Akane couldn't reach it.

"There," she said with finality. "Now you can't get to your purse even if you _were _planning on trying a sneak attack. You're just going to have to accept that I'm paying today. Of course, you can go hungry, but then it's a waste of food and money. Plus, you'll be hungry. Take your pick, Kikuchi-chan. If I were you, I'd just do my friend the favour and eat it!"

She grinned and dipped a roll of sushi into the little dish of rich dark sauce before lifting it to her lips and carefully biting into it, holding it tightly with her wooden chopsticks. Akane chewed her lip for a moment, glancing up at her blue-haired friend every now and then. Eventually she caved, reaching for her chopsticks, and began to eat, more to oblige Sachi than to satiate her hunger. She'd much rather have returned to the dorm to prepare something from the refridgerator than eat the food that someone else had paid for, but not eating it would have appeared selfish and rude, and she didn't want to offend her first friend at the school.

About halfway through her lunch, Akane noticed that Mika was still gazing around the cafeteria. Or rather, she realized, she was gazing at something. Obviously she had located whatever it was she was looking for. There was a wistful sort of look in her eyes. Sachi caught Akane's focus and smirked at Sazuki, who seemed to catch on immediately. Though what she was catching onto was far beyond Akane.

"What 'ya looking at, Mika-san?" Sachi asked loudly, a sly tinge creeping into her voice. Mika snapped away from wherever she was watching, her golden-brown eyes wary.

"What do you mean?" she demanded, her cheeks tinging pink. Sachi grinned at her.

"My mistake," she said, with a big, dramatic sigh. "I thought you were staring at someone."

"Yeah," Sazuki added, her hazel eyes twinkling with mischief. "_I _thought for sure you'd be looking for _As-a-a-ato-o-o_." She sang the name of whoever she was talking about.

"No!" Mika snapped. "I wasn't staring – I mean, I wasn't looking for him, I just – argh!"

Sachi and Sazuki roared with laughter. Mika's face burned.

"Excuse me," Akane interrupted quietly with carefully chosen timing. "Who is Asato?"

"He's my friend," Mika growled, glaring darkly at the two mischievous trouble-makers.

"Yeah," Sachi added. "Her _best_ friend, who _happens_ to be a boy, who _happens_ to be an insanely good looking, intelligent, _popular_ boy, who she just so _happens_ to majorly _crush on_."

"I do _not _crush on him!" Mika objected, cheeks red as tomatoes. "That's like… like… liking your brother! Urgh! Gross!"

"Oh come on, Mika, you know you like him," Sazuki teased. Mika sent her a scathing look.

"It's not true," she grumbled. "We're just close friends."

"Not in your dreams," Sachi muttered under her breath. Mika, who she was squished next to, elbowed her fiercely in the ribs.

"Ow!"

"Hey, where are the seniors?" Kiseki suddenly asked. She had been contentedly stuffing her cheeky little face with a variety of fruits and vegetables; a diet that Akane couldn't help but find strange for the girl who seemed to be on a permanent sugar-rush. At least a sugar-filled diet would have helped explain the boundless optimistic energy of the joyful girl.

"Probably either studying, preparing extra assessment tasks, or in a senior meeting," Sazuki replied, gnawing away at the pocky. Kiseki shrugged.

"It's gotta suck to be a senior," she commented. "No fun. They're always so busy."

"It's not so bad," a voice said from the table beside them. They all peered over at lavender-haired Yume, who was sitting up in her seat with impeccable posture, as always. Her silvery eyes watched them with a serene interest.

"Yume-san!" Kiseki cried gleefully.

"Have you been there long?" Sazuki asked, a little shaken up by the sudden appearance of someone in a seat that had been otherwise unoccupied for the good portion of lunch.

"Three seconds," Yume replied. "Now four."

"Gosh, it's so creepy the way you guys do that," Sazuki complained. "Just _popping up_ everywhere all the time. I'm never going to fully get used to that."

Yume merely smiled a little and dug into her fish dish with an elegant sweep of her chopstick-laden hand.

"So where were you all?" Kiseki asked curiously.

"We had a short meeting," Yume replied. She didn't say anything else about it. "I believe Madar-san should be joining us shortly."

Unfortunately for the seniors who hadn't yet returned, a mere few seconds later, the bell rang, signifying the end of their lunch break and the cue to move to their next classes. Sachi sighed heavily, leaving the last little piece of sushi on her square plate. Umeko and Mika rose from the table, tossed their short goodbyes over their shoulders and joined the mass of students surging towards the escalators. Kiseki was up in a flash, skating figures of eight around the empty tables while she waited for the others to organise themselves, pretending the disgruntled complaints from the other students had nothing to do with her.

Akane was only too happy to have to stop eating the food that she hadn't paid for. She'd felt guilty eating it, and to her, food never tasted as good if you felt guilty for having it. She set her chopsticks neatly together in the middle of her little square dish, and reached under Umeko's now vacant seat to retrieve her school bag.

"Ugh, Mathematics," Sachi groaned as the four girls shuffled along with the slow-moving crowd towards the escalators. "Do we have to go?"

"Do you want to pass?" Sazuki replied.

"Granted," Sachi sighed ruefully. Akane walked just behind them, keeping a carefully close distance to the pair so as not to be separated again. While she wasn't being watched by her blue-haired friend, she quietly dug in her school bag and found her purse. Taking out a few hundred yen, she carefully slipped them into the side pocket of Sachi's bag, her conscience finally clear.

What Sachi didn't know wouldn't hurt her.

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**So there you go, another chapter for you all, right on New Year, too! Happy New Year, everyone! I'll update again possibly in the next week :)**

**Review, review, review, my lovelies!**

**Ciao for now,**

**Cherrie S.**

**xoxo**


	9. A1,P1,S9: First Day's Classes

**Hey guys and girls,**

**So, my computer just screwed up big time. I'd spent half an hour writing awesome A/Ns to you guys, and then I went to save the document, and it told me I had to log in again! I lost everything I'd written, and now I'm mega-cheesed-off. MEGA. This has happened to me before; I wrote an enormous PM once, and then it told me to log in again when I tried to send it, and I lost the WHOLE DAMN PM.**

**Anyway, let's move on, shall we?**

**1) I told you guys I'd update 'sometime this week' and now it's 'sometime this week', so I'm updating for you :) Aren't I a good girl? You should like me lots, too, because this chapter is 17 pages long, instead of the usual 8. You can thank Kish's Kittie for that; she alerted me to the fact that this story is going to get so enormous that 8-page chapters aren't going to be long enough. So I'm packing twice as much into each chapter now. Great for you guys; it just means I gotta write more (nervous laugh).**

**2) I'm now officially an adult in Australia! I can drink, I can drive, I can dance all night in nightclubs - whenever I want. Yeppers, it was my birthday yesterday! Yaaay! This is my present to you, my way of celebrating my 'special day' with all you guys. So, Happy Cherrie-Sakura's Birthday, everyone! Hope you like your extra-special present :)**

**3) There's a new poll on my profile, for all those who haven't headed there for a while. I was having a discussion with my brother one day about the whole concept, and I thought I'd let you guys voice an opinion on it. By 'magic', I don't mean spells and Harry Potter, LOL. I mean more Alice/Edward Cullen abilities for some of the Cyniclons, or something along those lines (cough-Momoka-cough) HAHA. That doesn't give away anything at all!**

**4) I've literally JUST finished writing this chapter, so sorry if there are little mistakes and typos everywhere; I didn't even get time to proof-read it. I was so enthusiastic about getting this update up for you guys. You deserve it, after all the nice stuff you all said to me :) I feel like I belong here. And it's such a nice feeling, belonging somewhere. I like belonging here, with you guys :) We may never meet, but you guys have impacted on my life so much, and I think you deserve to know that. I live to be here. So thank you :)**

**5) ROSELIACOOL: I especially added an appearance for your character in this chapter. Every time you review your excitement grows and I think it's just the cutest thing! So I thought I'd relieve you of your near-explosions just a little. He he he. Don't worry; she'll have more of a part when I can work her in some where. I did like this bit for her, though. It's sweet :)**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew :( I do own Akane, Sachi, Yume, Momoka, Emiko and Mew Academy :)**

**Dedications...**

**Story for Mew-Cuxie12. She still doesn't know this story exists. LOL. Chapter for every single person who reviewed and offered me support through the rough time. It's getting better now. You guys really have no idea how much you helped me through that. Words can't describe it. So, I promise you right here and now, that I will write this story until I DIE if I have to. I'm GOING to finish it for you guys. You deserve it. Your dedication is just amazing, and it's because of you guys that I've never given up the determination to complete Mew Academy. Thank you xx**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE NINE

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The long, bright hallways were packed with students as the girls made their way to their first afternoon class. Akane was quickly realising that she was going to have to get used to the hurried, impatient bustling of the students at Mew Academy. Here, everyone was in a rush to get somewhere. The pushing and shoving that took place in the movement between classes was simply something she couldn't avoid, and no amount of gentle excusing or polite waiting was going to get her anywhere.

She squeaked as she was knocked out of the way by a tall, burly senior boy. Sachi grabbed her arm to stop her from falling, not even pausing a second in her fast-paced conversation with Sazuki. Once Akane was steady and walking again, she let go of her arm, her hands waving around to emphasise whatever she was talking about. Kiseki was zipping along ahead of them, darting and weaving her way through gaps she expertly picked in the crowd, her arms tucked in close to her body as she dodged students who snapped at her as she zoomed past.

They were all accustomed to the ways of Mew Academy.

Akane was learning that she was going to have to toughen up if she wanted to survive at the school, and she had a strange feeling somewhere inside her that she wasn't ready to give up yet, despite it being the most unreal and challenging experience she'd had to face since... Well, since the mess that _made _her the way she was; the mess that was making it difficult to adjust to the busy, city high school life.

She trailed into the classroom behind her three dorm-mates and was met by the chattering voices of fifty girls, all engrossed in conversation. The atmosphere in the room was very casual and relaxed in comparison to Pai-sensei's History class – the girls didn't even seem to realise it was meant to be a class. Then again, Akane thought, there wasn't a teacher apparent. The desk up the front was empty, and the blackboard was still covered in the notes from History.

"Nakamura-san," Akane murmured, tugging the back of Sachi's blazer gently when the blue-haired girl failed to respond. Sachi turned around and smiled.

"How many times do I have to tell you to use my first name?" she demanded, propping her hands on her hips, mock reprimanding. "Honestly, I'll have to start _demanding _that you drop the honorifics, and then I'd just feel like a bully. You don't have to be so polite, Akane-chan!"

"Sorry," Akane said quietly, blushing. Sachi grinned at her.

"It's okay; I forgive you, for now. What were you after?"

"... Where do I sit?"

"Oh! The seating arrangements are the same as they were in History, so you're next to Sazuki again. Is that okay? If you don't want to sit there I can probably get us swapped for today – you can have my seat if you want," Sachi offered. Akane shook her head, but the blue-haired girl had continued without stopping.

"Or Sazuki and I can swap seats. People have done that before; swapped around for the first day so the new student was comfortable in class... Do you want to do that? I'm sure Sensei will be fine with it."

She sniggered, obviously thinking about some private joke, for Akane couldn't understand what was funny in what she'd said.

"No," Akane said quietly. "Thank you, but... it's no trouble."

"Well, okay, if you're sure you're fine," Sachi replied, dark eyebrows rising. Akane nodded. Sachi shrugged.

"Alright, then," she said, her smile widening again. "I'll see you at the end of class."

With that, she wandered away between the seats, heading further towards the back of the room. Akane walked between the rows towards Sazuki. It wasn't so bad this time, she mused, seeing as all the girls around her were so busy gossiping to pay her any attention, so she didn't feel uncomfortable finding her seat.

She slid gently onto her chair and started quietly unpacking her things.

"Kikuchi-chan, don't bother," Sazuki said, resting her chin on her palm, her elbow propped on the desk top. Akane blinked in confusion.

"... Why not?"

"You won't be needing your books," Sazuki explained, with a roll of her lovely hazel eyes and a small smirk. "Believe me."

"But..." Akane trailed off, very much confused.

"Oh this _is _a class," Sazuki said, answering her unspoken question. "But it's not one you learn anything in."

"Oh..." Akane murmured, gazing down at her half-pulled-out note book. She listened to Sazuki munching quietly on another strawberry pocky beside her, tossing up whether to listen to her dorm-mate or not. She couldn't comprehend the idea of a class where the students didn't learn anything. What was the point of having the class? She'd never had a lesson where she didn't study and take notes... And she couldn't imagine what would happen in a class where one did absolutely nothing...

So she took out her note book and pencil case despite Sazuki's advice, and set them up neatly on the desk in front of her before putting her briefcase-style school bag under her seat and gazing around the room in amazement. The noise level was pretty phenomenal. The girls sounded like a bunch of infuriated parrots, all chattering and squawking at once. Akane mused that it would be very difficult to focus in classrooms like this.

"9B!" a voice suddenly snapped. It was high and whiny, sort of childish, and sounded annoyed. Akane glanced to where the voice had come from, and her brown eyes fell upon a small (in comparison to Pai-sensei) male Cyniclon, his alien-pale skin peachier than most of the Cyniclons. His thick brown hair was tied in a low, sort of messy ponytail, his eyes glowing like honey.

He was dressed in a simple white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow, an inexpertly tied red and yellow tied hanging loosely under the opened collar. His top button was undone, and the hem of the shirt was only loosely tucked into the set of grey suit pants he wore. In short, it seemed to Akane that he didn't like what he was wearing very much; he hadn't taken the care to dress himself carefully, like Pai-sensei had. In fact, he just looked like an overgrown school kid, with a desperate need for a haircut. His brown hair fell down his back, very much unruly.

"9B!" the man called again, trying to regain some sort of control over his wayward class. No one paid him any attention, and as Akane watched him glancing around desperately to see if anyone was listening to him, she couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He shouted to them again without success, before giving up, rolling his eyes, taking out a textbook and consulting his role.

"Kikuchi Akane?" he called out after a moment, and Akane rose where she sat. He registered her movement and held up the book, indicating for her to retrieve it. She did so, taking the thick mathematics textbook in her small, thin hands and thanking him politely in a quiet voice before returning to her seat.

The Cyniclon watched his disobedient class for a few moments, his honey eyes burning with frustration. Then he sighed deeply, took up his own copy of the math book and opened it to a marked page, erasing the History notes and writing up his own formulas and examples.

Akane stared around the classroom at her classmates, an incredulous look set firmly on her face. She was so shocked she forgot to mind her expression in case she offended anyone or drew attention to herself. Her chocolate eyes wide with disbelief at the behaviour of the class, she gazed, open-mouthed, from one chattering pair of mouths to the next, wondering how they didn't feel ashamed of themselves for being so rude to their teacher. It was on the list of things that she would never even consider doing; the things that would never ever cross her mind.

However, in her panning of the large room, Akane also noted that there were a select few students who were sitting silently in their seats, their eyes flicking from the board of notes to their workbooks in which they were scrawling. All of these people had serious, focused expressions on their faces, and didn't even seem to notice the thunderous noise of the other forty voices around them. She admired these students, marvelling that it obviously _was _possible to learn in a classroom full of distracting noise. One of them, she noticed, was Tanaka Emiko, the raven haired, Sachi-allergic girl from their dormitory. The other girls' comments about her studying immediately floated to her mind.

She opened her workbook, inspired and relieved, and took her pen out of her pencil case, dating the margin and starting to copy down the teacher's notes herself.

"Kikuchi-san, what in the world are you doing?" Sazuki asked a few minutes later. Her face appeared in Akane's peripheral vision, and she obediently put down her pen and straightened up in her seat, turning to face the brunette.

"... Writing the notes."

"Why?!" Sazuki gasped, like she was committing a crime. "It's a waste of time; we teach ourselves later in a group. You can just learn it all then."

Akane was silent for a moment, trying to find the best, non-offensive answer.

"... I'll bring my notes along," she eventually replied. Sazuki pulled a face, but let it go and shrugged.

"Well, okay. If that's what you want to do..." she trailed off, as if she hoped Akane might suddenly change her mind and sit back in her chair. The auburn-haired girl merely allowed a small smile to grace her heart-shaped face, and she picked up her pen again.

But she was interrupted once more, not three minutes later. From the front of the classroom there came a loud slam, and what sounded like the snapping of a piece of chalk. Then a roar of frustration rang out, as the messy-haired Cyniclon let loose a bellow of anger.

There was immediate, complete silence.

Akane stared at the math teacher in shock, and quietly put down her pen. He was standing on his desk, frustration twisting his impish, childlike face, his peachy pale hands balled into fists. The thick textbook lay innocently on the floor, where it had been deliberately and effectively slammed down.

The disbelief of the students was thick, like a fog. No one said anything for a full minute. Then, to Akane's bewilderment and horror, the teacher did something she would never have expected a teacher to do.

He threw a tantrum.

He stood on his desk and stamped his feet, throwing his arms up as he yelled his complaints about how his students treated him, about how nobody paid attention in his classes, and how it wasn't fair, it just wasn't fair.

Akane blinked, her small mouth dropped open once more. Beside her, Sazuki seemed to be trying to fight a fit of giggles that were threatening to overcome her. Her cheeks were rapidly turning pink, and her eyes were shining with amusement.

Glancing around the room, Akane noticed that many of the girls seemed to be suffering the same feat as Sazuki. Everywhere she looked, there were smiles being fought, laughs being restrained, and red faces. She turned back to the angry little man with wide eyes. What in the world was going on in this class?!

His tantrum only worsened when he realised his students found it amusing.

"It's not funny!" he yelled, his scrunched-up face a sort of mottled red-purple. "It's _not funny_! It's not fair, I tell you! Not fair! Why doesn't anyone take me seriously? How come everyone pays attention in the _others' _classes but not mine? It's _not fair_! Being a teacher is stupid! I never asked to teach this stupid class anyway!"

He stomped his feet once more and then cried, "I hate my life!"

At this, a chorus of giggles exploded around the room, growing into laughter. Girls sat hunched over in their seats, grasping their stomachs, tears pouring down their faces, or leaning back from their desks, silent laughter raking their bodies.

Akane just blinked at the insanity that had become the math class. Beside her, Sazuki was one of the ones with her arms wrapped around her stomach.

"Oh... Oh it hurts!" she gasped, her eyes sparkling with tears of laughter that hadn't yet fallen. She giggled again, wiping at her cheeks.

Up the front, the little Cyniclon man was staring mournfully at his students. It was apparent his tantrum had subsided. Now, he looked forlorn and worn out. He sighed deeply, casting his eyes to the floor, his elf-like ears drooping a little.

"I should just stop coming," Akane heard him mutter. Then he reached for the book on the floor and returned to the board, where he resumed writing up his notes. Her heart went out to the strange, dejected little man. It must be difficult, she mused, trying to teach a class where none of the fifty girls in it were willing to pay any attention.

She pulled her lips down in a tight, straight line, and decidedly reached for her pen again. Well, _she'd _pay attention; _she'd _listen to what he had to teach.

Gradually, the laughter slowly subsided, and the girls went back to their jovial conversations. It was as if the tantrum interruption had never even happened. Akane understood now what Sazuki had meant by "it's a waste of time"; ninety-eight percent of the class weren't learning anything. But there were a small percentage of girls who _were _learning, and Akane had just joined them.

* * *

"Well, another brilliantly useless class of Taruto-sensei's," Sachi said, grinning, as she popped over to Akane and Sazuki's desks. The bell had just gone, and everyone had immediately moved to chat with their friends while they packed away their things. The funny little man had stormed from the room, muttering to himself, without a word to his class. He really was quite immature for a teacher, Akane thought to herself. She didn't voice this opinion, however, as it was without a doubt the rudest thing she'd ever thought about a teacher, and she was embarrassed to admit she thought a little lowly of a teacher.

"Tell me about it," Sazuki replied, yawning. She rested her chin on her hand, turning to face Sachi were she was rested against Akane's desk.

"Did you have fun, Akane-chan?" Sachi asked jovially, mischievous amusement sparkling in her dark eyes. Akane smiled a little, her hands quickly and quietly sliding her pencil case into her bag. Sachi glanced down at her book, which she hadn't put away yet.

"You took notes?!" she gasped, snatching it up in shock. Her eyes swept over Akane's neat writing, and she looked up, her mouth open. She turned on Kinomoto-san, her expression accusing. "Sazuki!"

"I warned her! I told her before the class started!" Sazuki cried, defending herself as she slung her bag over her shoulder. Sachi turned her confused gaze to Akane. She blinked and put the book down.

"_Why_, Akane-chan?"

Akane allowed a small smile, taking up the book in her small hands.

"It's only a useless class... if you want it to be," she replied quietly, tucking it away and zipping her bag closed. She glanced down at the desk, knowing Sachi's expression would be incredulous.

"You're crazy, Akane-chan," she decided. Akane didn't know whether she meant that as an insult, so she sat perfectly still, stiffening a little. But a light laugh followed, and she glanced up at Sachi's smiling face. So she was joking, after all.

"Come on, let's go," Sachi said, still smiling, and she led the way towards the corridor, where the crowds of students were surging once more.

Akane let herself flow along, lost in her thoughts as she gazed quietly around the hallways, vaguely aware of Sachi and Sazuki's chattering voices in her subconscious. It was a truly beautiful day. The sun was bright and warm, streaming through the enormous glass windows in white-gold beams and falling on their faces. She smiled appreciatively, her brown eyes sweeping across the view of the well-kept gardens of the school. It was definitely a lovely campus, she thought to herself. Even if she was absolutely petrified of everything else, she would always admire the gardens.

The trio crossed the little bridge that joined the buildings, filtering off from the main body of students and joining a large number of ninth graders who were milling around the elevators. Akane glanced around at their fellow classmates, wondering why everyone was hanging around the lifts. She turned and voiced this thought to Sazuki.

"Our next class is in the Gym," Sazuki explained, pausing in her seemingly never-ending conversation with Sachi to answer her question. "And these elevators right here are the only way to get to the ground floor… Silly, really, building such an enormous school and only having a couple of sets of elevators… But, that's just how it is. So we all have to stand around and wait a while."

"There are no other elevators?" Akane asked, eyes wide. Sachi grinned.

"Nope. He can build almost anything he sets his mind to, yet he failed to add a few extra sets of elevators," she laughed, shaking her head. They didn't have to wait too long; a few minutes later, an elevator freed up and they packed inside with seven other girls. Akane was quickly pushed to the back, and she found herself squashed as far into the corner as she could go, her skinny shoulder pressed painfully against the metal wall.

"Uh... um... E-excuse... me..." she tried weakly, wriggling as a girl stepped back and trod on her foot. The girl broke off from the conversation she was having with her friend and turned in surprise, her sky blue eyes wide.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" she giggled, moving forward to give her some room. Akane peeled herself from the wall, allowing a small smile of gratitude to curl up the corners of her lips.

"... Thank you," she said quietly. The girl flashed a smile and turned back around, her blue-streaked brown ponytail almost whacking poor Akane in the face. The lift began to descend and Akane's stomach dropped; she curled her arms around her waist, wishing the uncomfortable feeling would dissipate.

She tuned out from the girls' bubbly conversation, feeling it would be rude to listen in when she wasn't included. She could hear Sachi and Sazuki's voices laughing somewhere close, but couldn't see them, so she focused her soft brown gaze on the shining tiled floor, her eyes flicking up every now and then to the vivid satin blue ribbon tied around the smooth ponytail of the girl who had squished her.

Finally, the elevator came to a stop, jolting a little as it reached the ground floor. Akane stumbled a little, as did everyone else, her elbow and head bashing painfully against the wall. She blinked a few times, waiting for the world to focus again, and rubbed her elbow. The doors slid open and they all poured out, complaining about the rough landing.

"You okay, Akane-chan?" Sachi said brightly, waiting beside the elevator for the shy girl. Sazuki was massaging her wrist, her face twisted into a scowl of annoyance.

"Stupid faulty piece of–"

"Come along now, girls," Sachi interrupted quickly, linking her arms through her companions'. They walked out through the sliding glass doors, a chain of girls in matching pink and black uniforms, and flowed out along the path that led to the tram station. However, instead of continuing towards the platform, as Akane assumed they would, they veered right and followed a different path, heading around the base of the pink castle towards the vast green gardens.

"... What's our next class?" Akane asked, finding her voice and some courage from somewhere inside her. Sazuki and Sachi exchanged a quick glance.

"Um..." Sazuki began awkwardly. "It's called Tech... Technical Application... Uh..." She trailed off, looking to Sachi for help.

"It's kind of like a P.E class," Sachi offered carefully. "But it's more like a practising class."

"... Practising?" Akane asked curiously. Another exchanged glance.

"Yeah," Sazuki replied. "We practise... how to defend ourselves... and fight... and stuff."

"Oh..." Akane nodded. "Is it to practise being a Mew Mew?"

Both girls' mouths dropped open.

"So you _do _know about all that!" Sachi cried, pointing an accusing finger at her. Akane said nothing; the statement was rhetorical enough. Why waste her breath?

"But... how?" Sazuki asked, confused. "I thought she didn't know what her animal was... I thought the injection process didn't work."

"... It didn't," Akane replied in her soft voice, wondering briefly how often she'd been the topic of gossip in the dormitory. Up until this point, she didn't think anyone would be talking about her... but Sazuki's behaviour was suggesting otherwise.

"I don't understand," Sazuki confessed flatly, her expression blank.

"... Shirogane-sensei explained it all to me," Akane replied.

"Oh, he did?" Sachi sounded very surprised. "Well, there you go! So you _do_ know about us, then?"

Akane nodded.

"Did he explain why you didn't transform?" Sachi asked.

Akane shook her head.

"Hmm," Sachi 'hmm'd.

"Weird," Sazuki decided. There was a short, thoughtful silence, which the brunette soon broke.

"Well, yes... Tech class is where we practise how to be a Mew Mew... We practise hand-to-hand combat, and battling against Chimera Anima, and we learn to how to use our weapons and how to attack like a Mew Mew."

Akane listened, taking all this in, her brown eyes wide. What exactly did a Mew Mew have to _do_? It was starting to sound incredibly dangerous and frightening.

"Apparently Tech class gets better as you advance into the higher classes," Sazuki was still talking animatedly. "It totally sucks that we don't get our costumes until next year... and we don't get our proper weapons until we're Seniors!"

"... Proper weapons?" Akane asked. "Costumes?"

"We're only first year students," Sachi explained. "So we have to transform into a mandatory uniform in Tech class. It's so ugly... and we all have the same weapon. Another school supplement."

Both girls pulled faces, apparently unhappy with this situation.

"It's so unfair!" Sazuki soon snapped. "We should be allowed use our own costumes, at least!"

Sachi shrugged simply.

"There's the gymnasium," she announced, pointing ahead with her free arm. Looming up before them was an enormous, square yellow brick building with a slanting roof. The windows were tall and black, tinted so dark that they could see their reflections as clearly as if they were looking in a mirror.

They followed the concrete path right up to the glass double doors, which slid open for them like the entrance doors to the pink castle. Upon walking inside, a cool breath of air blasted their faces, and the door slid shut behind them.

Akane glanced around, surprised at how plain the interior of the gym was. The walls were clean white and bare. She'd expected medals and flags and trophy cases, like all other school gymnasiums seemed to proudly display wherever they could. But the gym at Mew Academy was more like a big, foreboding fitness centre. Off to the right were two doors, one marked 'male' and the other 'female' – obviously changing rooms, and through a glass wall that spanned the entire width of the building she could see a big room, like a hall.

"We're just going to get changed, Akane-chan," Sachi said, disentangling her arm from the shy girl's. "We'll be right back. Wait for us here, okay?"

Akane nodded obediently, drifting over to stand beside the door. Her friends' chattering voices echoed behind the white brick wall, mingling with the happy voices of their classmates. She wondered if she should have brought her own sport uniform, even though she was sure she wasn't going to be able to participate in the class' activities. And then she realised that she didn't even have a sport uniform yet.

She waited patiently and silently, her hands clasped behind her back, her eyes focused on the bare wall opposite her. A good number of students – all from the ninth grade, she assumed – walked past her, either going to get changed, or heading towards the hall-sized room behind the glass wall. All of them glanced at her curiously. None of them said anything to her, which suited her just fine.

"See, told you she wouldn't go anywhere," Sachi's triumphant voice broke the bubble of silence that had formed around her. Akane glanced up.

"She might've gone exploring," Sazuki pointed out. Sachi rolled her eyes.

"But we told her to wait here," she replied. "Why would she go anywhere?"

"I was just saying she _might _have gone somewhere!" Sazuki cried, exasperated.

"But she didn't," Sachi said. Sazuki sighed.

"I _know_. I was wrong, okay? Attention, world: Sazuki was wrong about Akane! There, happy now?" she said, hands on hips. Sachi opened her mouth to respond, but the brunette cut across her quickly.

"Just let it go, Sachi-chan!"

Sachi grinned, black-brown eyes twinkling.

"She doesn't like to be wrong very often," she whispered to Akane as they followed the taller girl towards the glass wall.

"Heard that," Sazuki called over her shoulder, pulling open a door in the wall. Sachi grinned angelically at the scowl she shot at them, and they poured into the enormous room beyond the glass wall.

Most of the ninth grade girls seemed to have assembled in the room, Akane mused, counting dozens and dozens of heads sitting on the bleacher-style benches against one wall. The roof was high, the floor pale, polished wooden floorboards. The girls were grouped on the bleachers, sitting and chatting casually, all dressed in the Mew Academy sport uniform: a round-necked white t-shirt with cherry pink lining, and a pair of impossibly short black shorts, the school insignia emblazoned on the single back pocket. Most girls wore white or pink socks with their trainers, and many had black and pink jackets to match the shorts.

"... Is this..." Akane trailed off, her brown eyes drifting over the sea of girls. "... All the ninth grade girls?"

"Yep," Sachi replied. "Well, it should be. It's easier having the two girls' classes together for this period. They do it with the boys as well."

"Hey, Sazuki-chan!" a gleeful, unmistakably familiar voice rang out, echoing across the hall. Akane didn't even have to turn to know the light footsteps pounding towards them belonged to Kiseki. She was beside them in moments, bouncing on the balls of her tiny feet, grinning impishly.

"Yeah, hello to you, too, Kiseki-chan," Sachi said pointedly, unimpressed at the directness of Kiseki's attention.

"Hi, Sachi-chan!" Kiseki greeted apologetically, grin widening. Sachi rolled her eyes and unfolded her arms from where they'd been crossed over her chest in a stance of disapproval to wrap them around the smaller girl in a friendly greeting.

"Hi, Akane-chan!" Kiseki added, turning. Before Akane could say or do anything, the bouncy girl's arms had been thrown around her in a surprisingly bone-crushing hug, her strawberry blonde ringlets soft against her cheek.

"Uh... H-hello..." she said weakly, not knowing what else to say. Sachi and Sazuki grinned widely as Kiseki let go and danced back, leaving Akane stunned where she stood.

"Don't worry, Kikuchi-chan, you'll get used to that," Sazuki assured her. "Where are the others, Kiseki-chan?"

"Sitting over there," Kiseki replied, pointing to the bleachers. "See? There's Mika-chan and Umeko-chan."

"Then let's go join them," Sachi said.

"Tally ho!" Kiseki cried joyously, leading the way enthusiastically, and ignoring the odd looks their classmates threw her. Well, Akane thought, she either deliberately ignored them, or actually didn't notice because she was too wrapped up in her own optimism.

"Hey guys," Sazuki greeted when they reached the pair of girls sitting quietly in the bleachers.

"Hey," Mika replied, her flecked golden-brown eyes glancing from one face to the next. She smiled at Akane, who forced a weak smile in return.

"Did you get to talk to Asato-san after lunch today?" Sachi asked, grinning widely as Mika's face darkened. A thunderous expression burned in her eyes.

"Would you just shut up about it?" she growled, but the effect of her anger was nullified significantly by the blush that was creeping up her neck and flushing her cheeks. Sachi and Sazuki laughed and dropped down beside the mortified girl, preparing for what Akane imagined would be a killer interrogation. She remained standing where she was, her chocolate eyes sweeping over the many faces in the bleacher. She started in surprise as she recognised Tanaka Emiko's black ringlets among the bright coloured hair, and felt a sympathetic stab for her; she was sitting alone, her nose buried in a novel.

"Want a seat, Kikuchi-san?" Umeko's voice asked, interrupting her thoughts. Without thinking, Akane obediently sat down beside the honey-haired girl.

"How are you?" Umeko asked, seemingly asking for the sake of it.

"... Fine, thank you," Akane replied, for the sake of politeness. Umeko fixed the white nurse's cap on her head, making sure it was still there. She glanced instinctively at Akane, who was watching her, and smiled a little. Akane allowed a small smile in return.

"Girls!" a sharp male voice suddenly rang out among the chatter, and it immediately died as one hundred sets of eyes turned simultaneously towards a single figure standing on the polished floorboards before the bleachers.

He was tall, Akane mused, but not as tall as Pai-sensei, and it was instantly clear that he considered himself in high regard; there was something about the way he held himself that suggested he had an enormous ego. His pointed chin was tilted upwards, his lips curled up in a smile that was almost a sneer, his sharp fangs gleaming against his lips. His skin was pale, like the night moon, his shining seaweed-green hair falling down his back in long tresses. His eyes burned golden, like honey, and he was dressed like a character from one of Shakespeare's plays; he wore a long, maroon, high-necked coat with golden braid and elegant trimming, a pair of tight black pants, a ridiculously frilly white shirt, the sleeves of which poked out of the cuffs of his coat, and a pair of heeled black shoes with big buckles.

There was a collective sigh of appreciation from a large number of the girls in the bleachers; Akane glanced around and caught many gooey-eyed expressions on the faces of her classmates. She blinked, surprised. It was apparent this Cyniclon – his ears were distinctively pointed, and his elegance could only be alien – was highly approved of among the student body.

"Good afternoon, ladies," he greeted, his smooth voice a deep purr. The tension in the atmosphere built. Akane fought the overwhelming urge to giggle at the immaturity of her classmates' behaviour. It seemed everyone was in love with this teacher, whoever he was.

"Before we begin today's lesson, may I ask, is there a Kikuchi Akane present?" the elfin-like man asked, his golden eyes scanning the crowd. Akane, who had been feeling extremely out of place being the only one in the school uniform rose shakily to her feet, her embarrassment rising as she felt the hundreds of eyes fix on her.

"Welcome," the alien purred, smiling at her. "You will partner with Miwako for this semester. Make sure you organise a uniform for next lesson. Now, everyone, pair up and line up in your pairs against the far wall."

There was the instant buzz of excited chatter as all the girls stood up and started moving around. Akane slowly rose to her feet and turned to her friends. She was surprised when she found their expressions alarmed and even shocked.

"... What is it?" she asked quietly.

"You're partnering with Miwako," Sachi managed to reply. She glanced at Sazuki, who was frowning deeply.

"... Is that bad?" Akane asked, confused.

"Let's talk to Kisshu-sensei, Sachi-chan," Sazuki suggested. "I'm sure there's someone else she can partner with..."

"Yeah, okay," Sachi agreed, and she rose as well.

"... Wait," Akane half-called. They both turned, surprised.

"What's up, Akane-chan?" Sachi asked.

"I... I'm fine with my partner," Akane said. "Please... don't go to the trouble..."

"Nonsense! You haven't met this girl, Akane-chan," Sachi said, immediately waving her hand, as if dismissing the idea. "And you don't want to. Pairing you with her is just cruel."

"... Why?" Akane asked, confused.

"Because you're so nice. And she's so... _not_," Sazuki replied. "She's weird."

"She's mean," Kiseki added, joining the conversation, her emerald eyes sparkling.

"She's like the Dominatrix. She'll annihilate you!" Sachi agreed. "No. As long as you're our friend, we're not going to let you be destroyed by a monster like her."

"Exactly," Sazuki nodded. Akane blushed at the compliment.

"... Thank you... But... I would rather just stay the way it is," she said softly. The other three looked like it had been announced that the world had run out of chocolate forever.

"Akane-chan, I know you're noble and honourable and all, but seriously–" Sachi began, but Akane, finding herself determined, interrupted, for the first time since she'd arrived at the Academy.

"Thank you for your kindness, Nakamura-san, but I would like to partner with Miwako-san."

Sachi looked like she'd been slapped. Sazuki looked like she'd just watched a meteor destroy the Eiffel Tower. Kiseki's mouth fell open.

Blushing furiously, Akane forced herself to turn around, and, chewing her lip nervously, she lifted her head a little and walked down the bleachers towards the green-haired teacher.

"B-b..." Sachi stammered in shock.

"Did she just...?" Sazuki trailed off. Kiseki said nothing, silenced for once.

"Hello, Kikuchi-san," the alien greeted smoothly, looking up from the role he was consulting. "What can I do for you?"

"... I... I..." Akane struggled to find the words to say. He rose one perfect eyebrow, the smile gracing his porcelain features almost sinister.

"You're the girl without her powers," he said for her. She nodded thankfully.

"Well, we'll soon straighten that mess out," he assured her, sounding very confident. "For now, just stick with Miwako and watch everyone else."

Akane nodded silently. He flipped his role closed and tucked it under his arm.

"E-excuse me?" she asked, her strength quickly faltering once more. He flicked his golden eyes up to her face, acknowledging her interruption.

"... May I ask... Which is Miwako-san?"

"Oh. Right. Miwako!" he called. A few moments later, a tall girl was standing beside them, her long arms folded across her chest. Akane recognised her after a moment; she was one of the girls from her morning History class. Her shoulder length hair was straight and shone silvery, like the moon. She'd tied it back messily, except for the two loose bangs that framed her face, jet black against the silver. Her dull grey eyes were emotionless and critical as they fixed on Akane's heart shaped face. She sniffed once through her nose – a derisive sort of snort – and then she focused back on the teacher, seemingly unhappy with the pairing arrangements.

"This is Kikuchi Akane," he introduced. "You're in charge of taking care of her for this class."

"Whatever," the girl said dully, gazing around the room, looking bored by the conversation. The green-haired man nodded once and walked away. Akane waited silently for the other girl to say something, but she didn't, and the two withstood an awfully awkward silence.

"This way," Miwako grunted eventually, walking off without another word. Akane trotted after her, her heart hammering nervously in her chest. She wondered briefly if she should have just let Sachi and Sazuki request a partner change, but immediately scolded herself for being so ungrateful. She was lucky to even have a partner, coming to the school so late in the semester.

They walked over to join the line of students against the wall; Akane astutely aware of the comfortable chatter between other pairs and the painfully tense silence between herself and Miwako. They joined the line, and stood silently, waiting for the class to begin. The tall girl didn't make any acknowledgement of Akane's discomfort, and if she did notice it, she didn't do anything to make anything any easier. Akane had the disconcerting idea that Miwako simply hated her.

"Today," Kisshu-sensei addressed the awaiting class, "we will be focusing only on preparing for battle. That is, your reaction time, your ability to switch immediately to battle mode, and your attention to detail."

There was a tensely eager fidgeting amongst the students, and Akane felt it wrap around her own heart. She was practically dying to see what the Mew Mews were like; her curiosity was churning inside her.

"In pairs, you're going to come forward to the middle of the room," the majestic alien explained, waving one slender, pale hand in the air, gesturing behind him. "And I am going to summon the most basic of Chimera Anima. Yes, I know–" Akane saw that Tanaka had raised her hand to say something "–that we haven't yet covered real Chimera Anima, but if I didn't think you were ready to fight an actual monster, I wouldn't be doing this, would I?"

She put her hand down, humbled, her pale cheeks burning.

"Any other complaints?" Kisshu purred. He was met by a dead silence. He bowed his head.

"Very well. We'll start with... Mori, Hanako and Suzuki, Umeko. Come forward, please."

The two girls extracted themselves from the line and walked out away from everyone else. Their footsteps echoed quietly against the shining floor as they followed the costumed man to the centre of the room.

"Remember, this is a test of your attention and your ability to react," he purred, golden eyes gleaming darkly. He gazed at them both until they nodded their understanding. Everyone else was silent, watching and waiting. Akane could almost hear the tension crackling in the air. Beside her, Miwako was leaning against the wall, her hands shoved in her jacket pockets. She was staring at the ground, utterly uninterested.

Then there came a strange sucking sort of sound from the middle of the room, and Akane fixed her eyes on the palm of the teacher's hand, in which was materialising a glowing orb of what greatly resembled goo. It was growing bigger and bigger in his hand, glowing more brightly with each passing second. Everyone's eyes were watching the blob; when it had finished growing it floated above his upturned palm, emitting a strange yellowy aura that seemed to mesmerise anyone looking at it.

Kisshu allowed one sinister smile to grace his delicate lips before he raised the glowing thing above his head and called, "Fusion!"

There was a blinding flash of light, and a horrible roar filled the room. When the light faded, an enormous, hideous beast rose up behind the teacher. It stood on all fours with sharp, curling nails on its paws and a long, naked tail as thick as a roofing beam. It screeched, revealing enormous, pointed teeth, and its long whiskers twitched on its pointy nose.

In short, it was the most enormous, most _mutated_ rodent Akane had ever seen.

It screeched again, more dangerously than the first warning screech. Both girls opposing it flinched, back-tracking instinctively. Kisshu shut his eyes and disappeared on the spot, materialising on the other side of the room, ready to take action if necessary.

Hanako, Umeko's partner, was the first to react.

"M-Mew Hanako, Met-metamorphosis!" she stammered shrilly, and something around her neck exploded, golden light showering everywhere, engulfing her body. When it faded, she was still standing as she was, but in place of her sport uniform she was wearing a plain grey dress which fell to her thighs, the puffed sleeves cuffing her shoulders. Strangely, her hair, which had been blonde, now fell to her shoulders in rich orange-red locks; her eyes, once blue, shone yellow-green, like cat's eyes.

But that wasn't all.

Akane stared in amazement, closed her eyes and opened them again and again to make sure she was actually seeing what she was seeing. Protruding from the girl's head, tucked among the strands of red hair was a pair of perfectly shaped cat ears, burnt orange in colour, streaked black like tiger's ears. And from the base of her spine had sprouted a long, curling orange tail, tiger-striped to match the ears. It flicked around behind her like a snake.

"Good, Mori-san," Kisshu praised, his voice ringing out among the impatient thumping of the hideous beast's tail against the floor. "Suzuki-san, you can't just stand there and stare at the monster. No matter how unbelievable it is, it _will _hurt you, and you _will _have to be able to defend yourself. Standing there gawping at it won't help you in the slightest."

Umeko folded her arms across her chest and sighed in frustration; whether it was at him or at herself was indecipherable to Akane.

"Mori-san, de-transform, and both of you take your places in the line," Kisshu instructed, destroying the monster with one simple attack. Akane was feeling a little faint. The whole thing was unbelievable. Enormous, ridiculously unbeatable monsters created from everyday animals? Girls who actually _transformed _into half-human, half-animal mutants? It was all too much to handle!

Umeko's partner closed her eyes and scrunched her face up in concentration. Then there was another, short flash of light, and she was normal again. Blonde-haired, blue-eyed, de-cat-eared. The tail was gone, too. And she was back in her sport uniform.

Akane felt herself shaking her head in disbelief. She tried to grasp the whole concept... the whole 'transformation' thing, but it was difficult to accept the reality. Things like this just didn't happen – they just... _didn't_! And yet, it just _had _happened, right in front of her eyes! She couldn't deny what she'd just seen, even though her mind wanted to argue against the entire possibility of the concept. It was illogical... impossible!

She glanced around the room, trying to focus her gaze and steady her breath. She hadn't even realised she had started hyperventilating.

"Hey... you okay?" someone she didn't recognise asked, but her voice sounded faint and fuzzy, like she was speaking from the other side of a sound-proof glass window. Dizziness hit like a thump in her mind, and suddenly, her head was reeling. She felt her legs cave under her, and her knees hit something hard.

The last thing she saw was the bright lights on the roof, and the hazy swarming of faces above her before her eyes rolled closed.

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**Squee! Kisshu! Oh. My. God - he was SO much fun to write! I don't even LIKE him and he was fun! I love his clothes! Tee-hee! And the way the girls all react to him! Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Hee-larious! I'll admit, he's a BIT OOC, but remember, he IS ten or fifteen years older or whatever. He had to be more mature somewhat! And the perverted-ness will still be there, it'll just make its appearance later on :P I can't destroy his personality compeltely.**

**Has anyone else noticed that the three classes I've written have ALL been the Cyniclon teacher classes? O.O That wasn't intentional. Weird! LOL Taruto. He makes me chuckle.**

**So there, more characters. I'm shoving them in everywhere I can, trust me. There are SO MANY characters to try and work in! It's unbelievable. I've got about 36, or something (sweat-drop). To the authors whose characters have appeared already but seem to have vanished temporarily, believe me, it's just temporary. They'll be back. We're only in chapter 9! (Of like, 200! he he he...)**

**And I guess that's all I've got to say at the moment. Hope you all liked this chapter. I'll get another one up next week, if not sooner. It's gonna be hard writing more, but hey, writing's not a chore for me :P Besides, if I get writer's block, I'm pretty sure there are a couple of people I can call to for help :)**

**Please give your opinion in the poll, it'll only take 2 seconds of your time :)**

**Thanks readers, silent readers and reviewers alike; you're all fantastic! :) :P**

**Until the next update,**

**Cherrie.S**

**xoxo**


	10. A1,P1,S10: Study Session

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Hey Fictioners!

**So here's the next chapter of MA, which I promised would be published like, last week... Sorry it's a bit late, but I was working on Code X. Oh, speaking of which, readers who are following its progress, I'll try and have the next chapter up by next week; I'm about a third of the way through writing it. But no promises!**

**Surprisingly, it was hard to finish this chapter. I planned on writing more, but then realised the chapter would have been WAY too long, and what I wanted to add onto the end will pretty much make a chapter in itself, anyway! So it was a good decision to cut it where I did; as it means I'll hopefully have the next chapter up soon, and I could post this one sooner!**

**Beware. This is yet another boring chapter. There are bits that I like, but nothing overly huge happens in it. It's really just another set-up filler, peoples. So don't chew me - I did warn you!!**

**Read on, MacDuffers!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I own Akane, Sachi, Yume, Momoka, and Emiko :)**

**Dedications...**

**Story for MewCuxie12 (I think I spelled it wrong again!). Chapter for Mew-Sahara. Thanks for your lovely review! It made me smile hugely :D**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE TEN

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"Is she awake?"

"I think she just moved..."

"Yes, look – her eyelids are moving!"

"Akane-chan?"

The voices were growing louder and louder in her subconscious, interrupting the warm haziness of her drowsy mind. She focused her attention on the voices, the sounds of the world around her becoming sharper and clearer. Someone clicked a pen, someone put something down on a hard top – perhaps a glass, or something.

Akane opened her eyes, and found herself staring up at a very plain white roof.

"Hey, she _is _awake!" Kiseki's voice cried, sounding delighted. Akane flicked her chocolate eyes away from the roof and glanced around the room. She was lying in some sort of bed, pushed up against a white wall. On a plain wooden table beside her was a glass of water and what looked like a half-melted ice-pack. There were several other beds alongside hers, and a bench along the opposite wall. A lady stood behind it, looking at a computer.

And gathered around the bed, their expressions anxious, were Sachi, Sazuki and Kiseki, the three of them still dressed in their sport uniforms.

"Hiya!" Kiseki grinned when her gaze fell upon the curly-haired girl. Akane winced at the volume of her voice, which was piercing to her fuzzy mind.

"Shh, Kiseki-chan," Sazuki scolded sternly. She smiled gently at Akane. "How are you feeling?"

"... What...?" Akane trailed off, very much confused, her voice barely louder than a weak whisper. She pushed herself up in the bed of white linen, propping herself up against the pillows. What was she doing in the hospital ward?

"You passed out in Tech, remember?" Sachi explained. "The nurse said there was a nasty bump on your head... Did you hit your head earlier today?"

Akane thought carefully, running through the day's events in her mind. Then she nodded slowly – her head was still fuzzy.

"Oh, you did?" Sazuki said, sounding both surprised and relieved.

"... In the elevator."

"Oh, right!" Sachi gasped, realisation hitting. "When the lift jolted! The nurse said the bump on your head probably made you feel dizzy in class, and that's why you fainted."

"Oh..." Akane trailed off, thankful that they didn't know the real reason why she'd fainted. The events of the class came flooding back to her in one big gush. She blushed, casting her eyes to the floor, ashamed. She was probably the first student ever to freak out because they couldn't believe what they were being shown and taught.

Her weakness disgusted her.

"She's awake, nurse," Sazuki's voice said, dragging her out of her thoughts. The lady from the computer glanced up, smiled kindly and headed over.

"Good morning," she said brightly, smoothing a crease in her navy skirt. "How are you feeling? Does your head hurt?"

Akane shook her head.

"Are you feeling dizzy or woozy? If I hold up this finger, can you see it clearly?"

Akane nodded.

"So you're not at all dizzy?"

Akane shook her head carefully, ignoring the way it protested and throbbed dully.

"... Okay, well, just have a glass of water and sit a bit longer, then when you're feeling up to it your friends can take you back to your dormitory. Does that sound okay?" the nurse asked. She was a very friendly woman, and Akane felt guilty for not being very polite, but she simply couldn't muster the energy to be friendly. She was feeling too rotten about the episode in class, and far too ashamed of herself.

She nodded silently.

The nurse smiled kindly once more and checked her temperature.

"She's fine; her temperature is completely normal," she said, addressing the trio around the bed. "Just make sure she takes it easy tonight, alright? Don't let her play any sports, and maybe get her to sleep a little earlier."

"Okay," Sachi replied, glancing back at Akane, fighting a smile. She knew the chances of the shy girl getting up and playing a game were pretty much slim to none. Keeping her calm, quiet and indoors wouldn't be a problem.

"Thank you," Sazuki added quickly. The nurse smiled over her shoulder and returned to her computer. The four were silent for a moment.

"Do you want some water, Akane-chan?" Kiseki asked. Akane quietly took the offered glass and sipped from it, keeping her eyes cast to the floor.

"... Thank you," she whispered. Kiseki beamed.

"You scared us, Akane-chan!" she informed the shy girl, perching on the end of the bed and swinging her legs back and forth, her posture slacking. "We were afraid you wouldn't wake up."

"... How long...?"

"Only about ten minutes," Sazuki explained. "You weren't out for long."

Akane nodded slowly.

"Are you tired, Akane-chan?" Sachi asked.

"... I'm okay."

"Let us know when you're ready to head back," Sachi said. "The others are waiting for us in the Library for Study period."

"Sachi!" Sazuki hissed. "It doesn't matter if we miss Study for one night. We can catch up later. We should stay here, with Akane-chan."

"I know... I was just saying," Sachi defended herself. "_I _don't care if we miss Study."

Sazuki rolled her hazel eyes.

"Well all know _that_."

"... We can go," Akane interjected quietly, putting the half empty glass of water back on the bedside table and pulling back the bedclothes. She couldn't bear the thought of interrupting her dorm-mates' routine because she wasn't feeling a chipper one hundred per-cent; it made her stomach squirm uncomfortably. She didn't want anyone to sacrifice _anything _for her. She felt bad enough already about wrecking their Tech class – anymore and she would practically ruin their entire day!

"Akane-chan, are you sure you're feeling fine?" Sazuki asked, concern etched onto her face. Her hazel eyes flickered with uncertainty.

"... Yes," Akane replied quietly.

"No, seriously, Akane-chan... If you're not okay, then we're not going to go anywhere," Sachi said, hands on hips.

"... I'm fine."

She slid out of the bed and stood determinedly where she was, carefully masking the face of discomfort as her head momentarily reeled. Her vision swam for a few seconds before re-focusing, and she turned back around, re-making the bed.

"Kikuchi-chan..." Kiseki trailed off, sounding, for once, unhappy with the current situation.

"... Let's go," Akane said quietly, avoiding their eyes as she made her way to the door and held it open meaningfully. She didn't want to see the expressions on the other girls' faces. She was afraid that she'd look up into pitying eyes, or concerned frowns, or – worst of all – sympathy, none of which she felt she deserved.

Sachi and Sazuki exchanged a frown, both recognising their defeat.

"Come on, Kiseki-chan," Sazuki seemed to sigh. Kiseki hopped off the bed and picked her colourful skates up from where they were sitting on the floor, skipping over to meet Akane by the door, all smiles once more.

They returned to dorm seventeen in a considerably awkward silence – even Sachi and Sazuki weren't talking, for once. Kiseki didn't seem to notice the heavy quietness between the girls, but rather seemed to be in a world of her own; she drifted along the corridor towards their dorm like a floaty fairy, her emerald eyes far away as she thought about... Well... whatever Sato Kiseki's strange mind thought about.

Sachi unlocked the door in silence, and everyone followed her inside. Akane shut it quietly behind them, glancing around the comfortably messy, student-less room.

"Your bag is on the table, Akane-chan," Sachi called from her locker in the wardrobe. "Umeko-san brought it back from Tech for you."

"Oh..." Akane trailed off, wishing Umeko were there to thank.

"We'll only be a few minutes, Akane-chan," Sazuki said, sliding books into her bag, which was sitting, unzipped, at her feet. "We're just getting our stuff for study..."

"... Okay," Akane replied, sinking gently onto one of the striped sofas and watching them silently with soft brown eyes. The momentary peace was soon broken, however, as Kiseki flopped down beside her and, with the biggest, cheekiest grin she'd ever seen, began to pull on her skates. Apparently, wearing them overjoyed her.

"Are you coming to study with us?" Kiseki asked, her blonde ringlets tumbling over her shoulders as she leant over her knees to fasten the clasps. With an irritated grumble, she tossed them back, but she needn't have bothered – it was a waste of her boundless energy – for gravity slowly played with them; they crept along her shoulders and tumbled down in front of her face again.

Sighing deeply in defeat, the little girl sat back up, flashing Akane a cheerful grin and rolling her skates along the floor.

"Are you ready now?"i she asked impatiently. Akane blinked stupidly for a moment before realising she was addressing Sachi and Sazuki.

"Sato-chan, chill out for a moment," Sachi replied, grabbing her black Mew Academy sweats and pulling them on over her sport shorts. "Waiting an extra thirty seconds won't kill you."

"It could," Kiseki argued. "What if I stood at the side of the road for thirty seconds, and I missed the lights changing, so when I decided to walk across the road the traffic was heavy and I got hit by a bus?"

Oh, so _that _was the kind of thing she thought about.

Sachi gazed at the small girl for a moment, before shaking her head and rolling her dark eyes.

"You wouldn't, because you'd be smart and cross at the lights like every other normal person," she replied.

"But if I was waiting an extra thirty seconds I would," Kiseki pointed out, her expression intent, like she had thought through this all in a logical process.

"Why would you be waiting an extra thirty seconds, though?" Sazuki asked. "If you were waiting for the lights to change, wouldn't you cross when they went green?"

"Not if I was waiting an extra thirty seconds," Kieski answered. Sachi and Sazuki stared blankly at her. Akane fought a small smile at their absurd conversation.

"I don't understand," Sazuki confessed. "Why are you waiting an extra thirty seconds at all?"

"Because Sachi told me to," Kiseki replied.

"You told her to wait an extra thirty seconds when crossing the street?" Sazuki asked Sachi incredulously.

"No," Sachi replied. "I told her to wait an extra thirty seconds while we packed our bags."

"So why are you now waiting thirty seconds before crossing the road?" Sazuki asked, confused.

"Because Sachi said waiting thirty seconds wouldn't kill me," Kiseki explained brightly.

"And it won't!" Sachi snapped.

"Why not just cross when the cars have stopped?" Sazuki asked, frowning.

"Because then I wouldn't be waiting thirty seconds."

"Why_ thirty seconds_?!" Sazuki cried. "Why wait at all?!"

"Because if I wait an extra thirty seconds, I'll get hit by a bus!" Kiseki replied happily.

"Exactly! The _bus _will kill you, not waiting thirty seconds!" Sachi cried, exasperated.

"Do you _want _to get hit by a bus?" Sazuki asked, shocked.

"Not particularly," Kiseki replied, shrugging. The other two stared at her with narrowed eyes, like they were looking at an odd piece of artwork placed somewhere completely random and trying to work out what the inspiration could have possibly been for the person who decided to put it there.

"Sato-chan, I do not get you," Sachi said finally, turning back to her bag and zipping it up.

"So, wait," Sazuki said, thinking too much about the wait-thirty-seconds-and-get-hit-by-a-bus thing now to let it go. "You _don't _want to get hit by a bus, but you're going to stand beside a street until one comes so you can walk in front of it anyway?"

There was a long pause.

"No," Kiseki said.

"Whaaat?" Sazuki whined, looking dismayed.

"I'm going to stand by a street for thirty seconds and _then_ get hit by a bus," Kiseki corrected.

"But where's the bus coming from?" Sazuki asked.

"The road, of course," Kiseki said, pulling a face. "Where do you think buses come from? The sky?"

Sazuki ignored this smart-alecky comment.

"But how do you know the bus will be coming down the street exactly thirty seconds after you decide to start waiting thirty seconds before crossing the road?" she questioned.

"I don't," Kiseki replied simply.

"Then how do you know a bus is going to hit you after you've stopped waiting?"

"Well it doesn't _have _to be a bus... It could be a car. But a bus does more collateral damage."

"And you want the damage to be collateral?" Sazuki's eyes were wide as saucers.

"Yes."

"_Why?"_

"Because then I'm right and Sachi-chan's wrong!"

"Wrong about what?"

"Waiting thirty seconds."

"Before crossing the street?"

"No."

"Then for what? Kiseki-chan, I don't get it!" Sazuki cried. "This is doing my head in!"

"Come on, Sazuki. We're already late for study," Sachi interrupted, tossing the exasperated brunette her bag. She dragged the wardrobe door over and scooped up the dorm key from the table, pocketing it.

Akane rose from the sofa and crossed quietly to the door, opening it and waiting for the others.

"My head hurts," Sazuki moaned as they headed back along the hallway towards the elevators.

"Stop thinking about things that hurt your head, then," Sachi replied. The lift dinged! and they crowded inside, Kiseki eagerly pressing the button and poking her tongue out triumphantly at Sazuki.

"I won!"

"It wasn't a competition, Kiseki-chan," Sazuki replied, frowning a little.

"It's always a competition," Kiseki argued. Both Sazuki and Sachi rolled their eyes. The doors opened and they walked out onto the floor, crossing the white bridge between the pink and green castles. Akane gazed stonily ahead, determinedly refusing to glance down at the tracks that she knew crossed beneath them. She'd made that mistake once already. Her stomach dropped involuntarily, as it seemed it always would when she walked across the bridge.

Sachi informed Akane that they were heading to the library, which turned out to be an enormous _room _that covered almost the entire fourth floor. They climbed a wide, beautiful mahogany spiral staircase up from the second floor, walking through the frosted-glass panelled wooden doors.

Akane felt her breath catch.

The library was easily the most magnificent room she'd ever been in. It was long and wide, with a high roof and thick Persian rugs on the rich, dark polished floorboards. The shelves and shelves of bookcases stretched away in rows, neatly lined width-ways across the room. In the very centre of the truly massive hall was a round desk – a perfect circle – behind which sat the librarian, a pleasant-looking woman with her thick hair held in its bun by a web-like black hairnet. She was typing at a computer. Her fingernails tapping against the keys was the only noise to break the heavy silence.

The girls seemed to know exactly where they were going; they headed off towards the middle of the room, and turned left at the circular desk. Akane trailed behind them, gazing curiously at the ends of the rows, and at the little brass plates that explained what their shelves contained; many titles ones she'd never even heard of.

Between each row were two large square desks, one at each end, with a light shaped like a Japanese lantern in the middle of the table. The desks were big enough to seat eight or ten students around them, and it was to one of these desks, about halfway down the left aisle, that Sachi, Sazuki and Kiseki headed. Akane recognised Umeko, her head bent over whatever book she was reading.

"Hey, Suzuki-san," Sachi greeted, pulling out a rather high-backed chair and dropping into it, dumping her bag on the table before her. Umeko glanced up, her purple-blue eyes registering who it was that had interrupted her.

"Hello," she replied, as Sazuki and Kiseki joined them.

"Where's everyone else?" Sazuki asked, looking confused as she glanced around, as if she expected them all to come bursting out from behind a shelf and shout 'surprise!'.

"The tenth graders are having a study session somewhere else. The seniors are off doing preparation mid-terms. Mika's studying with Asato."

"Of course she is," Sachi replied sarcastically, smirking devilishly. "In _his _dorm."

"Nakamura-chan," Umeko said, sounding tired, "You _know _they're not in a dorm. Just leave them be."

"Ah, you're no fun," Sachi sighed, pouting. "We totally could have gotten out of study session right now to go spy on Mika-chan and Asato-_kuuun_."

"Don't call him that!" Sazuki gasped, smiling as Kiseki burst into a fit of girlish giggles. "Only Mika-chan calls him that."

"My point," Sachi said, still smirking. "Someone seriously needs to call Cupid. Does he have a cell?"

"So," Umeko interrupted loudly. "Trigonometry."

Sachi groaned and rested her forehead on the table. Sazuki's smile faded a little, the laughter dying out her eyes. Kiseki's giggling slowly ceased, her face becoming uncharacteristically serious.

"Alright," Sazuki sighed. "Let's get it over with."

She pulled her books out of her bag, the others mirroring her, and they opened up their textbooks to the page Taruto-sensei had been trying to teach them from that morning.

"So, where do we start?" Sachi asked gloomily, her shoulders sagging. Akane almost felt sorry for her; she looked so dejected sitting there gazing miserably at her mathematics books.

"Akane-chan, why don't you sit down?" Sazuki offered, and Akane promptly blushed as they all looked at her. She hovered a little, stepping back from the table.

"... I'm okay."

"You're not going to learn this?" Kiseki asked, surprised.

Akane shook her head gently, smiling a little. She'd already learned it. Why learn it all over again?

"Akane-chan took all the notes today," Sazuki explained to the stunned blonde girl. "She learned everything in class."

"Oh." Kiseki's eyes were wide, like she were witnessing some feat being attempted for the first time in the history of mankind.

"Akane-chan, can we borrow your notes?" Sachi asked hopefully, looking up from the desk with big brown eyes. Akane immediately nodded, taking out her book and handing it to the blue-haired girl.

"Thanks," Sachi said, looking elated. "This should make time go faster."

"That's called 'cheating', Nakamura-chan," Umeko pointed out with a frown. Sachi shrugged.

"I'm not copying her answers. Just her notes. So I can either re-write the textbook, or re-write Akane's notebook. Either way, I'm still getting the notes. And Akane-chan doesn't mind, do you?" she looked up again. Akane shook her head, allowing a small smile to grace her face.

"... May I please leave my bag?" she asked politely. Umeko looked up, awed that she'd actually spoken.

"Hmm? Oh, sure... Just dump it over here," she indicated to the empty desk space beside her. Akane quietly removed her bag from her shoulder and placed it on the desk, trying not to make any noise that might interrupt the four girls' writing or break their concentration. She stood silently for a moment, watching them scrawling in the notebooks, glancing up at their textbooks every now and then, occasionally muttering to themselves or erasing something to write it again.

Sachi and Sazuki started discussing applications of equations and which formula to use with which type of problem, and Akane found herself absent-mindedly drifting towards the nearby shelves, gazing curiously at the titles along their spines. They were sitting between the Martial Arts and Machinery (Obsolete) sections, the two long rows surprisingly packed for topics Akane didn't think would be that popular. As she drifted along towards the end of the row she was looking at (Martial Arts), she let her fingers trail along the spines, watching them leave little trails in the faint layer of dust that had settled on the books over time.

"Akane-chan, we'll be here for a while," Sachi called, noticing her small form wandering away from the table. "So if you want to go exploring, you can come back and find us later. We'll wait for you here, okay?"

With a small, silent nod, Akane walked away from where her friends were studying, letting her chocolate eyes gaze around the enormous library, drinking in its endless row of books, its squashy little sofas shoved wherever there was space, its line of high-tech computers along one wall, and its many students huddled in groups around the tables, or curled up on the sofas. It was a decidedly neat place, albeit comfortably cosy, and despite the piles of books that seemed to sit all over the place.

It was the Japanese History section that Akane eventually found herself in, her eyes flicking from one thick volume to the next, skimming the titles of those concerning the history she already knew... The history she thought was the real history.

It was books on the Cyniclon involvement in history that she found herself pulling off the shelves, flicking the dusty pages of, and gazing at the glossy pictures of.

It just didn't make sense. How could there be so much narration that she never even knew had existed?

She was holding an especially thick book, seemingly containing all there was to know about the Human-Cyniclon history when she turned to pull the chair out of the table behind her. She was planning to read away the rest of the time left in her dorm-mates' study session, and was, surprisingly, quite anxious to learn as much as she could – to learn the _truth _– about the history of the world she _thought _she'd grown up in.

Except there was already someone sitting at the table.

Akane stood rooted to the spot, staring at the top of the girl's raven head, the ringlets of which tumbled over her shoulders and onto the pages of the notebook she was writing in. Her head was bowed as she focused on what she was studying. There were textbooks spread out all around her; it was clear she had either been here a long time, or was intending to be here much longer.

Sensing the shy girl's gaze, the other glanced up, redoubling when she realised Akane was actually standing there, staring at her.

"Uh... hi," Tanaka greeted slowly, her deep blue eyes narrowed a little.

Akane said nothing, still surprised that she'd managed to completely miss the presence of the smaller girl in the first place. She was normally quite attentive.

"Are... you okay?" Tanaka asked, sounding a little alarmed, but mostly suspicious. Akane blinked, drawing herself out of her stupor. She walked lightly to the edge of the table and gazed down at the lit lantern, wondering what to say.

"Do you... want to sit down?" the black haired girl offered, pulling her books into a closer pile of mess to create some room. Akane blinked slowly and pulled out a chair, dropping into it gently. She glanced up at her dorm-mate, who was gazing back curiously, like she was trying to work out why she recognised the silent girl sitting opposite her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked eventually, tapping her pen against her notebook.

"... I..." Akane trailed off.

"Where's Nakamura?" the other said suddenly, jerking a little in her seat and glancing around, much as Sazuki had done; like she expected Sachi to jump out from behind a shelf with a weapon of some sort.

"... She's studying," Akane replied, finding her small voice. Tanaka snorted.

"Yeah, sure."

Akane said nothing to this. What could she say? By defending Sachi, she would offend Tanaka, a girl who she did _not _want to get on the bad side of. But by agreeing with Tanaka, she would be lying, an act she simply did not consider to be an option. Besides, it wasn't her dispute to get involved in.

"So... why aren't you studying, then?" Tanaka demanded, glancing back down at her books.

"... I don't need to," Akane replied quietly. Tanaka raised one eyebrow.

"That brilliant, huh?" she said sarcastically. Akane blushed furiously, a deep, rich red, her eyes burning with embarrassment. She shook her head furiously, dismayed that the other girl had misunderstood completely what she had meant, and now probably thought she was an obnoxious know-all.

"N-no... that's... that isn't–"

"Never mind," the other girl waved it off, un-offended. "You're Kikuchi, right? Kikuchi...?"

"... Akane."

"Akane... Hmm... I'm Tanaka Emiko," the raven-haired girl said. Akane nodded. She _did _know that. There was a lengthy pause, during which both girls glanced from each other to a stationery object somewhere on the desk, and back again.

"So... you seriously don't know what your compatibility match is?" Emiko asked, a certain curiosity in her voice that betrayed the fact that she'd obviously been wanting to ask the question for a good while. Akane nodded.

"That's so... strange," Emiko said. Then she gasped. "I'm sorry! It's not that _you're_ weird... but that _it's _weird... you know?"

Akane nodded, more to ease the other's discomfort than to actually agree. She really had no idea. Right now she felt like she didn't actually know _anything._

"And you really had no idea about... any of this... before you came here?" Obviously another long-awaited question to be asked.

Akane nodded, reddening.

"Wow," Emiko breathed, her eyes wide.

Akane fidgeted nervously in her seat, her cheeks radiating more heat than the lantern was radiating light.

"So... what's it like?" Emiko asked, her voice lowered a little. Akane glanced up; she was watching the auburn-haired girl quite intently, not dissimilar to the manner in which Pai-sensei had originally surveyed her; like she was a math problem he couldn't work out.

She blinked slowly, wondering what the black-haired girl was talking about.

"Entering a world you didn't know existed," Emiko elaborated.

"... Strange," Akane replied, choosing her description carefully. Emiko laughed lightly.

"Yes, you'd imagine it would be," she agreed, smiling. She looked like she wanted to continue speaking, but didn't, her expression guarded, like Sachi or Sazuki's expressions whenever they'd said too much, or thought they'd offended Akane. It was an expression she was getting used to seeing, the shy girl realised. Lots of people seemed to wear it around her.

"So, how did you find classes today?" Emiko asked, dark eyes watching Akane closely.

"... Different," Akane replied. Emiko nodded.

"Not your usual math class," she commented. Akane allowed a small smile to curl up her lips at the memory of Taruto-sensei's tantrum.

"No," she agreed softly.

"Did you like History?" Emiko asked. Silence descended upon the pair, Tanaka watching Akane, waiting for her response.

"... I didn't understand History," Akane confessed, blushing again. She gazed down at her clasped hands, hanging her head shamefully. No doubt the small girl thought she was dumb.

"I didn't think you would," Emiko said, contrary to the comment she had been expecting. "Not only does Pai-sensei speed through the history of the world like it can be learned in one lesson, he lectures a class in a manner that bores everyone half to death. I don't blame you for not understanding."

"... But..." Akane trailed off, confused. Emiko waited, her pretty blue eyes patient.

"... You knew everything!" Akane blurted, pink-faced. Emiko laughed good-naturedly.

"I teach myself everything," she corrected. "Oh, Pai-sensei _is _one of the better teachers at the Academy–" she'd caught Akane's shocked expression, "But all you can do in that class is try and take as many notes as you can. He doesn't really explain things so that everyone understands it... But he's still better than Taruto-sensei..."

Akane smiled once more. Another, more comfortable silence fell over the table.

"... Why are you always alone?" Akane suddenly asked, then immediately gasped, wishing she could take back her question. It had just blurted out of her... she never just said what came into her mind! Emiko was staring at the table, her expression a little pained.

"I... I'm a bit more... reclusive... than the others..." she replied awkwardly, blushing. She didn't look back up at Akane, and they were both silent for a few moments, until something inside Akane compelled her to say,". ..Me, too."

And _then _Emiko looked up at her, her expression surprised. Akane couldn't hold her gaze; she glanced around at the shelves flanking their table. A long moment of understanding passed between them.

"Do you want me to help you learn History?" Emiko asked. Akane looked up at her, and the blue-eyed, raven-haired girl gazed back.

Simultaneously, they smiled.

* * *

"Kikuchi-chan!"

Akane perked up at the sound of her name echoing in the library. She dragged her soft brown eyes from the page of the book she was reading, and turned in her seat, just as three figures came around the far end of the shelves.

"_There _you are!" Sachi cried (a very annoyed 'Shh!' from a nearby senior shortly followed) and, beaming, she skipped up the aisle towards the table, Sazuki and Kiseki trailing behind her. "We were wondering where you'd got..." she abruptly fell silent, her black-brown eyes noticing Emiko for the first time.

"Nakamura," Emiko greeted shortly, her eyes hard.

"Tanaka," Sachi replied, her voice smooth. It sounded like she had her teeth clenched.

"Oh, hello Tanaka-san," Sazuki said brightly, coming to the rescue. "We didn't know you were here."

"Hi, Kinomoto-san," Emiko returned, her face assuming a pretty smile.

"Whatcha reading?" Kiseki asked, resting her arms on the back of Akane's chair. The shy girl held up her book without a word, and the three others simultaneously cocked their heads to read the title.

"The Ages of Mew History," Sazuki read aloud. "Interesting."

"Is that for History?" Kiseki asked, confused. Akane nodded.

"But we didn't have History homework!" the smaller girl protested. The others fought smiles.

"... It's just some light reading," Akane explained quietly, carefully marking the page and closing the book gently. Kiseki's eyes nearly popped out of her head.

"You're reading History textbooks for _fun_?!" she gasped, horrified. Akane glanced at Emiko, who was carefully focused on her studying again, her nose pointedly buried in her book. Sensing her discomfort, she rose from her seat.

"... Thank you, Tanaka-san," she murmured, bowing her head respectfully. Emiko glanced up, shocked, and blushed a little.

"No problem. Uh... See you tomorrow?" she asked, aware of the others' curious gazes upon them. Akane nodded silently, sliding the book back into its place on the shelf.

"... Goodbye."

"Bye."

"See ya later, Tanaka-chan!" Kiseki cried cheerfully, earning them another furious hushing from the seniors. Before the joyous, too-loud girl could get them in any more trouble, Sazuki grabbed her sleeve and dragged her off down the aisle.

Sachi and Akane followed behind, a strange silence between them. Akane wondered how to break it; it didn't feel right when the bubbly blue-haired girl wasn't chattering away incessantly.

"... Nakamura-san?"

Sachi looked at her, her expression obliging.

"... Are you annoyed at me?" Akane asked, fear creeping into her small voice.

"No, of course not! Why on earth would I be?" Sachi demanded, her expression disbelieving. Her answer had been too quick, though – too loud. Akane wondered desperately what she'd done to irritate her host student, and trudged dejectedly along beside her, wringing her hands.

"Oh, here," Sachi broke the silence suddenly, holding out Akane's bag. "You left this at our table."

"... Thank you," Akane whispered, taking it gingerly in her hands. Sachi suddenly sensed her dismay, and looked at her, flashing a wide, very Sachi-like grin.

"So, seeing as our studying didn't take as long as it normally does, we've got more time tonight than we thought we did," she said, her hands in the pockets of her sweats. "So we're thinking of going to the hot springs... Do you want to come?"

Akane glanced at her shyly; she was still smiling, her eyes happy again.

"... Okay."

She was confused as to her friend's sudden mood swings, but decided to accept that things seemed to be fine again. While part of her sensed that Sachi was putting on a friendly face to disguise her annoyance, she happily recognised that the other girl was willing to swallow her irritation and make an effort to be merry.

She smiled a little in gratitude.

"Excellent!" Sachi babbled happily, slipping her arm through Akane's. "It's really fun, Akane-chan, and the hot springs are _so _nice – all steamy and aromatic... and you should see them in spring when the cherry blossoms are in bloom!"

Akane smiled at her friend, allowing herself to be steered from the library. She listened to Sachi's cheerful chattering as they headed back to dorm seventeen, her soft chocolate eyes fixed upon the figures of the two other members of their small party, further ahead. She let the smile linger, grateful for the kindness they'd all shown her so far, and, for the first time, feeling like she might actually have a place in her strange new life at Mew Academy.

* * *

**Okay, so chapter ten is done! We've hit double digits! Woo-hoo!**

**Thanks to everyone who voted in the Magical Mew Academy poll - your say was greatly influential.**

**Life's about to get wacko busy again for me; I'm off to a pre-enrollment day at Monash University (only one of Melbourne/Victoria's most esteemed universities!) this afternoon, and then I have a week before I jet off to Japan to stay with my best friend for a fortnight! After that I've got two days before O-Week (Orientation Week - or, as the Brits call it 'Fresher's Week') and THEN uni officially starts March 3.**

**So I will do my ABSOLUTE VERY BEST to get an update up for MA/Code X soon, but I really can't guarantee I'll be able to. On top of my own projects, there's Inter Dimensional Elementals, the co-authored story I'm writing with ZephyrFiction, New1Romantic and TazzybizzyNya - check it out, it's a self-inserted OC story! - AND ZephyrFiction needs some help with BNB, for any author/esses or readers who know what I'm talking about when I say it.**

**So - BUSY, if you couldn't tell! LOL.**

**There's a Twilight-related Tokyo Mew Mew poll up on my profile at the moment, for anyone who is interested. It's just a little poll; it'll be replaced soon with something MA-related. Ha-ha-ha!**

**Until the next update, REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW, readers!**

**Yours, faitrhfully, sincerely, truly, and very much gratefully,**

**Cherrie-Sakura**

**xoxo**


	11. A1,P1,S11: Very Hot Hot Springs

**Hey Fictioners.**

**SURPRISE! It's another chapter of MA! **

**LOLZ I know I updated yesterday, but see, I managed to sit down and force myself to write another chapter. So this is what got produced in about an hour or so, and I was literally falling asleep at the laptop, so do not be surprised if you find errors in it, or if it's simply not as well-written as other chapters. Ha-ha-ha!**

**Speaking of which, I must acknowledge the errors made in the previous chapter, which I discovered upon re-reading it last night. I was shocked - it was the worst chapter to date for mistakes! I am ashamed. And if Kish's Kittie was around (anyone know where she's gone? I'm thinking of filing a missing person's report... She's disappeared off the face of the earth!) she'd be mighty unimpressed. So, the errors I found are:**

**1. ("Are you ready now?"i she asked impatiently) - Look, I got no idea where that 'i' came from. I doubt I actually typed it there; there was another random 'i' at the very end of the chapter that I found and deleted. So maybe it was related to that? LOL.**

**2. (" Kieski answered.) - Yes, my first misspelled name. I spelled Kiseki 'Kieski'. -hangs head in shame-**

**3. ('watched them scrawling in the notebooks...') - Should have been 'their' notebooks. Gah.**

**4. (the spacing of the dots in the sentence: '... Me, too.') - What the hell happened to them?! LOL.**

**Alright, so now that my moment of self-reprimanding is over, I have a few personal messages to attend to!**

**Kyasarin-freakload (nee Vermont Cox): **I'm honoured you stick around for this story. As I have said before, Villissiti HAS already made a vague appearance - see 'It's Lunchtime' and carefully read the description of the painfully thin girl with red hair and turquoise eyes - but she will be reappearing more decidedly in - possibly - the next chapter, as I plan on her being Akane's semester lab partner. So - chillax, she's in. Oh, and it's the first character. I factored her too much into the story to be able to change her to the new one - sorry! :P

**ROSELIACOOL:** I understand your anxiety with your character - believe me, I'm doing my best to introduce everyone. One all the introductions and vague appearances are complete, I can focus on giving characters more specific parts. But what people need to appreciate and accept is, NOT EVERYONE'S OC WILL BE A MAIN CHARACTER. Gah! Rant over :)

**waterclaws:** DINGDINGDINGDINGDING! That is cor-r-r-rect! Congratulations! For guessing that specific part of the plot spot-on, you get this amazing prize: A virtual, life-sized blow-up Mew Ichigo doll! (nothing kinky intended) Yes, waterclaws, you are the sole person who has guessed the Sachi-Emiko thing correctly! Woot for you! Oh, those two girls are going to be SO much fun to toy with! -winks-

**Old-Fashioned Girl22: **You haven't done anything wrong, my friend. I am not mad at you in the slightest. I simply don't have time to sit down and write page long PMs at the moment. (Apologies here, too, for ZephyrFiction, who I also owe PMs) When I've settled into Uni and I get back from Japanland, I'll write you something long and amazingly funny :D

**Sparrow90: **I have absolutely no idea! I know you can replace chapters with new ones, but I don't know how to convert downloads. I'm really terribly illiterate when it comes to computers. I suggest asking ZephyrFiction or Kish's Kittie for help with your quandry. Sorry I couldn't be of more assistance.

**Okay. Extremely long A/N officially over!**

**Read on, MacDuffers! (LOL O-FG22, I've been saying that ever since you told me Kiseki says it. Ha-ha!)**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I do, however, own Akane, Sachi, Yume, Momoka, Emiko and... he he he. You shall see.**

**Dedications...**

**Story for Mew-Cuxie12. Chapter for SAKUUYA! There, happy now? You got your dedication. Now you don't have to review anymore! :D KIDDING! Don't leave MA now!!! D: Thanks for dedicatedly reviewing -blushes- Uh... about Severance... -sweatdrops... _DASH_- Oh, and I'm studying at Monash because its an excellent university :) I'll be majoring in Japanese, with minors of Professional Writing, Linguistics, French and goodness knows what else! I'll decide when the times comes! ;P**

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ACT ONE - PART ONE - SCENE ELEVEN

* * *

"In here, Akane-chan!"

Akane remained where she was, clutching her soft white towel in her small hands and gazing out over the marvellous scene before her. They'd returned to dorm seventeen and grabbed their toiletries, piling into the elevators and marching along the first floor to the 'back entrance'; a large wooden veranda that lined the back side of the school. A slanted tin roof protected the wooden planks from the sun and rain.

At either end of the veranda were two long, narrow staircases, which led down a sloping hill, at the bottom of which were several large, steaming pools of clear, warm water. Boulders rose up out of the water, and a wooden fence ran right down the middle of it, cutting it cleanly into two halves. All around the edges of the shallow pools were large, twisted cherry blossoms, currently not in bloom, but still breathtaking, with the soft white-grey steam billowing around them. The pools were shrouded in the same warm fog.

"Hey, Akane-chan! Earth to Akane-chan!" Kiseki giggled, bouncing over. Akane tore herself from her moment of delighted awe and smiled down at the smaller girl.

"... I'm coming."

She followed her friends into a small female change room built into the sloping hill, expecting something not unlike the interior of the hobbit's den in JR Tolkien's _The Lord of The Rings, _and was astonished to find the bathrooms modern and fancy. They were specifically built with the Japanese bathhouse theme; with shining wooden floorboards and sliding doors between the showers, but the tiles on the walls were a fresh, clean white, and the faucets far too Western to tie in with the bathhouse theme.

There were many girls in the bathroom- girls of all ages – all of them chattering away comfortably as they pulled off their clothes. Akane fixed her eyes on the floorboards, her cheeks burning. How they could all be so _comfortable _revealing their bodies to each other was a concept unfathomable to her. She would no more change in front of her friends than change in front of a group of boys!

Surely there would be a private cubicle she could change in...

"Come on, Akane-chan! Take off your skirt!" Kiseki called, wearing nothing but a little singlet and her underpants. Akane gasped and whipped around so her back was facing the smaller girl. But then she realised that a half-dressed Sazuki was directly in her line of sight, so she whipped around again, squeezing her eyes tightly shut.

"Kikuchi-chan, are you alright?" Sachi's voice asked. Too afraid of what she would see – or _not _see – if she opened her eyes, Akane nodded quickly, her mouth pulled into a tight line.

Sachi giggled, realising the catalyst for Akane's strange behaviour.

"It's okay, I'm still dressed," she said. "You can open your eyes."

Akane slowly opened one eye a sliver, peeking through her half-closed eyelashes to make sure there was nothing incriminating to be seen. Satisfied, she opened her eyes. Sachi raised one dark eyebrow, amused.

"Do you want to change in the showers?" she asked. "We all have to shower before we go in the springs anyway, but you can change in there now, before anyone else goes in."

Akane smiled gratefully and nodded silently, carefully keeping her eyes downcast as she let Sachi lead her to the showers. There was a large , round, communal shower in the very middle of the room, and a line of private showers along one wall.

"I'll wait for you by the door, okay?" Sachi said, winking. Akane nodded again and headed over to a private cubicle, sighing deeply in relief at the privacy she had been granted.

A short while later, four fresh-faced girls stood in the bathroom, thick white towels wrapped tightly around their slender bodies, covering just the right amount of skin for it to be acceptable, their hair dripping down their backs from the showers.

"We used to come to the hot springs a lot more than we have lately," Kiseki said conversationally, her sleek, plastered-to-her-head hair looking out of place in comparison to her usual mane of bouncy ringlets. It was a lot longer when it was wet, hanging most of the way down her back. "We used to come practically every night!"

"That was before Yume-san decided we were spending too much time focusing on the wrong aspects of education at Mew Academy, remember?" Sazuki pointed out. "And then she suggested the evening Study Sessions at the Library."

"We hardly have time these days, Kiseki-chan," Sachi agreed. Their feet padded against the wooden boards as they headed outside, into the pleasantly cool air. Akane shivered a little as the beads of water on her legs cooled, and she took an appreciative breath of steamy air, her eyes sweeping over the hot springs once more.

"Oh, come on Akane-chan," Sachi called, rolling her black-brown eyes. "Sure, it's pretty, but it's much more fun when you're actually _in _the water."

Sazuki grabbed four fresh towels from a wooden trolley beside the nearest pool and they sat them beside the water, ready for use when they got out again. Akane watched her friends step carefully into the steaming water before silently copying them, easing her feet under the surface until she felt the silty earth underfoot. They waded further into the springs, the water creeping up their legs as they headed into deeper depths.

Akane marvelled at the experience. It was the first time she had ever been in a hot spring; they didn't have them back home, and she'd never been on many holidays, so, really, the whole 'traditional-bathhouse-hot-springs' thing was completely new to her. So far it had been lovely; the sensation of the warm water against her skin was sort of like a bath, but the water felt different somehow... relaxing, magical even.

Noticing that the others had sat down and were making themselves comfortable in the water, Akane quickly copied, dropping down into the water too quickly, her splash resounding. Kiseki stared at her, astonished, water dripping from her face. She wiped her eyes.

"... Sorry," Akane muttered, humiliated. _At least, _she mused, _the steam here makes everyone's faces red... not just mine..._

No one said anything to her about her rather ungraceful entry into the water, but let her settle herself in silence, exchanging quietly amused glances. Akane waded over next to Sachi, gently resting her back against the formation of boulders as the others did. Confident that she wasn't going to be the creator of any further attention-drawing mishaps, she sank lower into the water, letting it rise to her shoulders.

She sighed appreciatively.

"Nice, isn't it?"Sazuki asked, watching her. Akane nodded, opening her big brown eyes.

"It's so relaxing," Sachi agreed, her voice a pleasant murmur. Akane glanced at her, surprised to hear her so dozy. "I could totally fall asleep right here..."

"Well, don't, unless you want to drown," Sazuki said dryly. Sachi opened one eye, splashing the brunette playfully.

"Don't start this, Nakamura," Sazuki warned. "You know it will end badly."

"Badly?" Sachi inquired, raising one eyebrow.

"As in: you lose, I win," Sazuki replied, grinning widely. She splashed a well-aimed wave of water in Sachi's face.

"Oh, you think you can beat me?" Sachi spluttered. "You're probably as good at water fights as you are at pillow fights..._ Terrible_!"

And suddenly, the two of them were splashing like toddlers, Kiseki taking chances where she could to splash both of them. Of course, the moment they realised they had another assailant, they turned on her, and Akane found herself in the middle of a water-flying frenzy.

"Hah! Take that!"

"Huzzah– _splutter_!"

"Hey – watch it!"

"Missed!"

Akane ducked, avoiding another tidal wave, and waded quickly out of harm's way, shying away to a more peaceful patch of the pool they were in to watch with curious brown eyes. She hadn't seen a bunch of teenagers playing childish games like this for years.

In fact, she'd _never _seen a bunch of teenagers playing childish games... until now, that was.

"Hey! What in the world is going on here?!" a new voice called, and the water fight momentarily paused so the four of them could face the newcomer. Standing knee-deep in the water were Umeko, Mika, Kasai, and two girls Akane had never met before.

Everyone was silent, waiting for the second half of Umeko's sentence.

"How could you have a water fight without us? The teams aren't even!" she laughed, her normally serious composure broken. It was like she had certain behaviour for certain times – Akane remembered when she had first seen the honey-haired girl; during the pillow fight the previous evening – like she was serious during school, and fun after hours. Certainly, her purple-blue eyes twinkled playfully as they glanced around now.

"Hey guys!" Sazuki greeted cheerfully.

"Oh, look, _Mika-chan's _here!" Sachi gasped theatrically. "I thought we weren't cool enough for you to hang out with anymore, Murakami-chan. I mean, you've been spending so much time with _Asato-kuuun_ lately."

"THAT'S IT!" Mika roared, finally cracking. With a war-like bellow she threw herself in Sachi's direction, spraying water on everyone.

And, like a red light turning green, the fight was on.

"If you're going to fight me, be on Sazuki's team!" Sachi cried over the loud splashing, her sentence broken by her spluttering. An endless torrent of profanities poured from Mika as she pounded her hands into the water, sending wave after wave at Sachi. Umeko immediately joined Sachi's side, splashing back in defense, but accidentally hitting Kiseki, who protested and fought back in response.

Akane edged further and further away from the scuffle, noticing that beautiful, blue-black haired Kasai had paired off with one of the girls she didn't recognise and the two of them were moving away to sit elsewhere. The other girl she hadn't known was somewhere in the water fight.

Akane let herself drift further away from the group, the sounds of their very loud battle fading until they were more like background noise than a CD blaring in her ears. She found herself in a large, empty pool, and waded towards the middle, venturing further from the gang. She drifted to a stop and half-floated in the shoulder-deep water, her chocolate eyes focused on the brilliant white stars above, appearing and disappearing as the clouds of steam billowed over her.

Yes, she sighed appreciatively, this was probably one of the most beautiful places she'd ever been to.

Consequently, it was due to her lack of attentiveness and her lazy, dreamy stupor that what happened next... happened.

The top of her head hit something that didn't feel like rock, and, startled, she tensed instinctively, gasping in surprise and inhaling a rather large mouthful of hot water, plunging under the surface. She coughed and spluttered, wondering what in heaven's name she managed to end up _under _the water, and struggled to surface again, panic-striken.

She suddenly found herself being dragged upwards and she burst out of the water, her breath coming in ragged gasps. Spluttering, she pushed her hair out of her face and opened her eyes, wondering why she was suddenly airborne and – strangely – freezing.

Her gaze was met by a stunned pair of startlingly azure-blue eyes, which belonged to a sturdy-shouldered, olive-skinned boy, his ashy, jet-black hair falling in his eyes, his thin, delicate lips a perfect 'o' of surprise. She was being held up carefully by a pair of strong arms... a pair of arms that were attached to his body... a body that was noticeably void of clothing from the waist up. He had a white towel like hers wrapped around his hips.

She blushed furiously, too stunned to say anything.

And then something white caught her eye. Something white that was floating in the water... something white that was _supposed to be around her body._

She screamed.

He dropped her, startled.

Akane surfaced, unable to believe that a boy she didn't know had just _not only_ seen her in the hot springs (bad enough!) but had seen her _without a towel _AND had held her utterly naked body in his arms.

She screamed again, clutching her wet towel around her body and glancing anywhere but at the boy in front of her.

"Akane-chan?" Sachi's voice called, but she didn't respond; she was still too horrified by the unfortunate incident that had just taken place.

"Are... you...?" the boy seemed to struggle for words, his voice strained. Akane couldn't tell if he was fighting laughter or humiliation.

"I'm sorry!" she gasped, bowing so low her tomato-red face nearly touched the water. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

"Uh... chill," the guy managed to say before the sound of loud splashing met her ears and figures seemed to materialise out of the steam.

"Akane-chan?!" Sachi's voice was worried. "Are you okay?!"

"... I... I'm here," Akane called softly, her voice weak. She refused to look at the boy.

"Oh, you're okay," Sazuki sighed, smiling in relief as the group of girls swarmed around the shy, auburn-haired girl. "We thought you were screaming."

"She was," the guy interrupted loudly, sounding unimpressed. Everyone fell silent, turning to look at him.

"A... _BOY_?!" Kiseki gasped.

"Hentai!" Mika shrieked. "Hentai! Hentai! _HENTAI!_ Get out of our pools!"

"Yeah, you shouldn't be here!" Sachi snapped. "Your half of the pool is over _there_!"

"H-E-N-T-A–"

"Hey – hey!" the irritated boy shouted, interrupting Mika, who glowered at him. "In case you stupid _girls _haven't noticed, the fence is right there–" he gestured with one hand behind them "–so, clearly, you _bakas_ are trespassing on _our _pools."

"Hentai!" Mika snapped in response.

"What were you doing to Kikuchi-chan?" Sazuki demanded, red-faced. Whether that was from the steam, or from the fact that a boy was in her presence while she was wearing nothing but a towel, Akane couldn't tell. Glancing around the group, she noticed all the girls were quite red-faced.

"I wasn't doing anything!" he snapped, his blue eyes glowering. "She shouldn't have come in here!"

"You shouldn't have touched her!" Sachi cried accusingly.

"I didn't!" he yelled back.

"You think just because you're a Shirogane you can get away with anything!" Sachi shouted, infuriated. "But you're not going to get away with molesting Kikuchi-chan! We're going to report you!"

"But I didn't do anything, you stupid wench!" the dark haired boy growled, clearly frustrated. "It was _her _fault! Now get outta our pools before I report _you_ and all your stupid little girly friends for trespassing!"

They glared at each other for a moment, all the other girls feeling suddenly self-conscious in the presence of a half-dressed male, and then snapped their gazes away childishly.

"Come on, Kikuchi-chan," Sachi huffed, putting an arm around the girls' shoulders and gently leading her away. "We won't let him touch you again."

She shot a glower over her shoulder – which Kiseki accompanied with a poking out of her tongue – and the boy glared after them, his arms folded across his bare, muscular chest.

* * *

"Ooh, the nerve of him!" Sachi grumbled, stomping around dorm seventeen in her pyjamas. She suddenly stopped, threw her head forward and ruffled her hair with a towel, bending over her knees. She threw her head back, her short wet hair falling around her chin.

"He didn't hurt you did he?"

Akane shook her head, staring at her hands, which rested in her lap. Her eyes flicked along the prints of her pyjamas, her long caramel hair dripping down her back.

"He didn't molest you?" Sachi demanded, still fuming.

Akane shook her head again, her stomach squirming with humiliation. Sazuki patted her hand comfortingly, sensing her unease.

"Don't worry," she whispered kindly. "It'll be okay."

"And he definitely didn't touch you?" Sachi continued ranting. Akane didn't reply. What could she say? Technically he _had _touched her, but not with any ill-intent, she was sure. And telling Sachi that he'd come anywhere _near _her would cause nothing but trouble for him, she knew that much. She couldn't bring herself to bring him any ill-fortune, not after he'd saved her like that.

Well, it wasn't as if she was actually _drowning_ or anything, but he'd saved her nonetheless, and for that she was grateful, even if the next time she saw him she'd probably throw herself in front of a bus.

Kiseki's 'thirty-second' argument from earlier in the evening drifted to the front of her mind and she giggled without thinking.

Everyone stopped what they were doing and glanced at her, amazed.

"Kikuchi-chan?" Kiseki asked curiously from where Sazuki had taken to braiding her long, wet blonde hair on the sofa. "What's funny?"

"... Nothing," Akane whispered, embarrassed. Sachi resumed her angry pacing. Sazuki resumed her nimble-fingered weaving of Kiseki's hair. Rin, the black-and-white haired senior who barely left her position on the sofa, continued reading, not even having looked up once from her novel. Umeko was curled up on one of the bunks, engrossed in a glossy magazine.

Another joined their party, heading in from the kitchen with two steaming mugs.

"Tea?" she offered Akane, who nodded gently, forcing a small smile of thanks. The girl set down the mug and sat down opposite her with the other mug. Akane glanced at her. She was a decidedly pretty girl, with soft, peachy skin and chocolate ringlets that fell to her shoulders, delicate and luscious. Her round, blue eyes were fixed upon Akane's face, and her small, thin-lipped mouth curved up in a friendly smile.

"I'm Migoto Onchou," she said in a sweet, melodic voice. "I don't think we've met yet."

Akane shook her head slowly.

"Oh, of course!" Sachi gasped, whacking a hand to her forehead, as if just remembering something. "Onchou-san, this is Kikuchi Akane, our new transfer student. Akane-chan, Migoto-san is one of the tenth-graders from the other dorm."

"I'm very pleased to meet you," Onchou said sweetly, still smiling. She toyed with a stray ringlet for a moment, tucking it behind her ear. Akane forced another weak smile.

The dorm door opened suddenly and two girls entered. One was Kasai, who strode in like a supermodel – even her hair looked amazing, and it was still wet from the hot springs!

"... and then she just turned and glanced down at my paper, as if she didn't know I'd have a lower score than her anyway!" she was saying. The laugh that followed was lovely and gentle. She stopped short, realising everyone was looking at her, and she shut the door quietly, smiling beautifully.

"Hello, everyone," she greeted, her icy eyes dazzlingly alluring.

"Who is _that_?" a sharp, female voice demanded. Clearly it belonged to the girl accompanying Kasai, for she walked out from behind her – no, _stalked _suited her more. Her misty yellow-green eyes were ringed around the edge of the iris with a dark line of emerald, giving them the appearance of cat eyes. Her full lips pouted a little in what was evidently a frown, her perfect eyebrows pulling down over her large, expressive eyes. She had a small, pointed nose, and flawless, translucently pale skin. Her eyelashes were extremely long and dark. Her hair – short, silky and layered – was platinum blonde, and had been ruffled stylishly in a kind of messy 'do.

She had a figure to die for; that much was clear as she strode gracefully to the table. She wore the uniform excellently, looking as much like a fashion model on the runway as Kasai did a model in a cosmetic commercial.

"Oh, Naomi, this is Kikuchi Akane, our transfer student," Kasai's pleasant voice called from behind them. "Kikuchi-san, this is my friend, Inu Naomi."

"Hi," Naomi said, sounding like she wished she didn't have to speak at all, staring at her with critical eyes. Her gaze flickered away from Akane's shy face, sweeping up and down her figure in one quick, judgemental moment. She sniffed through her nose and turned away.

"Kasai-chan, help me write my History essay," she said in a lazy voice that clearly left no room for discussion, strutting off towards the kitchenette without so much as a glance in the other girls' direction.

"Sure," Kasai called after her. "Is everything okay, Kikuchi-san?"

Akane nodded automatically.

Sachi rolled her eyes.

"No," she corrected. "Akane-chan just got molested by Shirogane." The was a hard edge to her voice. Kasai's lovely ice eyes widened in delicate surprise.

"Not... Shirogane-_sensei_?" she gasped, shocked. Kiseki giggled.

"No," Sachi replied, allowing a grin at the ludicrous idea. Her expression hardened again. "Shirogane from your grade."

To everyone's surprise, Akane included, Kasai laughed lightly, the sound obviously disbelieving.

"Oh, he wouldn't do anything like that," she said confidently, her tone merry.

"No, you've got the wrong Shirogane," Sachi explained. Kasai's pretty smile faded a little.

"Oh... Well, I don't know about the other Shirogane," she replied, her voice lower. "I don't really know what he's like."

"Kasai?" Naomi's demanding voice called from the other dorm.

"I'm coming!" the blue-black haired beauty called back. "Sorry, we'll have to discuss this some other time... I hope you feel better Kikuchi-san."

Akane forced yet another weak smile, and the elder girl left. The whole thing was getting way out of hand. She wouldn't be surprised if, by tomorrow morning, the entire school was gossiping about the incident in the hot springs, during which the young transfer student was sexually abused by one of the boys from the tenth grade...

She had to put an end to the rumours.

"... Excuse me?" she asked timidly, interrupting the silence. Everyone looked at her.

"... How many Shirogane's are there?" she asked curiously.

"Three," Sazuki replied. "There's Shirogane-sensei, and then there's his son, Shirogane Yuki, and his nephew, Shirogane Daisuke. Both boys are in the tenth grade."

_Yuki._

Why was that name so familiar to her? Where had she heard it before?

"... So... which...?" she trailed off awkwardly.

"Daisuke," Sachi answered. Akane pictured his strikingly blue eyes clearly in her memory, a strange familiarisation tugging at her mind, like she knew them from somewhere else; like she'd seen them before.

"Alright," a smooth, unexpected voice said, interrupting the conversation. "Someone explain right now what in the world has happened to cause the entire class of ninth grade females to gossip incessantly in their dorms."

Yume dragged open the wardrobe door with one graceful sweep of her long-fingered hand, slipping off her black and pink blazer and hanging it swiftly on a coat hanger. She turned back to the stunned girls, her expression impatient.

"Someone start talking."

"Oh... uh..." Sachi stumbled over her words. The black-haired, golden-eyed Cyniclon, Momoka, materialised on one of the sofas, and she turned her mysterious eyes to Akane, as if she _knew _the whole story already.

"Yume-san," she said lightly, her voice like silk. "Let it be. We'll talk later."

Yume turned back to the wardrobe, taking out a set of satin lavender pyjamas and disappearing on the spot. They heard the bathroom door lock, explaining her whereabouts.

"God you guys startle me," Sazuki complained, for the second time that day. Onchou laughed merrily, swilling the remains of her tea around in her mug, watching the water swirling with thoughtful midnight-blue eyes.

"Have you finished your tea, Kikuchi-san?" she asked presently, dragging Akane out of her thoughts. The shy girl nodded and rose from her seat.

"Oh, don't worry – I'll take it," Onchou protested immediately, taking the mug from her thin fingers.

"... Thank you," Akane murmured softly. "It was lovely."

"My pleasure." Onchou flashed another friendly smile and headed into the kitchenette.

"It's almost curfew," Yume said, hanging her uniform up in her wardrobe (Sazuki sighed again, rubbing her hands over her eyes). "Everyone start getting ready for bed."

Without another word, she disappeared again, her destination this time a mystery to everyone.

"So, Kikuchi-chan," Sazuki said, turning curious hazel eyes to Akane. "What actually happened at the hot spring?"

Akane stared at her hands again, wondering how to word her answer.

"... Nothing... _Terrible_," she replied quietly, not looking at any of them.

"But still bad?" Sachi guessed from the tone in her voice. Akane didn't answer.

"What did he do you, Akane-chan?" Kiseki asked in a loud whisper, her eyes wide like she was listening to a ghost story around a campfire.

"... Nothing," Akane whispered. They all blinked in confusion.

"But... I thought..." Sachi trailed off, eyebrows knitting over her eyes.

"You weren't hurt?" Sazuki asked, eyes wide. Akane shook her head, blushing.

"I'm confused, Akane-chan," Kiseki announced.

"Well, whatever it was, isn't it kind of obvious that she doesn't really want to talk about it?" Umeko spoke from where she was sitting on Sazuki's bed. It was the first thing she'd said since they'd gotten back. She glanced up at them with a pointedly disapproving frown.

"You're right," Sachi sighed. "Sorry, Akane-chan. I bet you're exhausted."

"Yes, and it's now _after _curfew," Yume agreed (everyone wondered exactly when it was she'd returned, but quickly dismissed the thought), walking over to the door and opening it for someone. "So everyone go to bed. Now... That includes you, Rin-sama."

The black and white haired girl extracted herself from the sofa without removing her eyes from the page and strode away to the other dorm, Umeko shortly behind her.

"'Night, everyone," she called.

"Goodnight!" they all chorused in farewell. Sazuki rose from the table and ran her hands through her brown hair, making her way over to the bunk she shared with Emiko. Through the dorm door came the chocolate-skinned senior Akane had hardly seen. She shut the door behind her and turned to look around, her face tired-looking.

"Being a senior sucks," she yawned, and Kiseki grinned, her lunchtime revelation having just been confirmed. The dark-skinned girl pulled off her jacket and tossed it unceremoniously in the direction of her wardrobe. Her dark, almond-shaped eyes caught sight of Akane as she got up from her seat at the table.

"Oh, hi, Kikuchi-san," she greeted in pleasant surprise. "How was your first day?"

Akane smiled a little at her but said nothing.

"That bad, was it?" Madar guessed, her deep voice rich and strangely soothing. She chuckled heartily. "It'll get better."

"... Thanks," Akane murmured softly.

"Nakamura, Sato, Kikuchi – bed!" Yume commanded silkily, disappearing again. They heard her voice talking in the adjoining dorm and Akane scurried to the bunk beside the window, clambering under the covers, eager to avoid trouble. It had found her enough that day.

"Goodnight, Akane-chan," Sachi's impish face grinned cheekily at her. She climbed the ladder and the bunk shuddered as she made herself comfortable in the bed above the shy girl.

"... Goodnight, Sachi-chan," Akane whispered, so softly she could barely hear herself.

"Sleep well everyone!" Sazuki said merrily, to which Kiseki replied, "Night-night!" and skipped from the room.

A few moments later, Kasai strode in from the other dorm, and Madar flicked off the light. Akane stared at the planks across the base of the bunk above her, waiting for her eyes to grow used to the darkness. She heard Madar climbing into bed, and the sofa was empty, which meant Momoka was also in bed. The wardrobe door slid open again, and Akane could make out Yume's tall, slender form in the shadows.

A sudden though hit her and she rolled over. The bed beside her was empty.

Tanaka Emiko wasn't there.

"Goodnight, everybody," Yume's silky voice said from the next bunk over, and Akane wondered why it was acceptable for Emiko to be absent. Was it something normal?

A heavy silence fell over dorm seventeen as, one by one, the girls it housed began to fall asleep. Akane listened to the varied breathing of her dorm-mates – light, heavy, shallow, deep – and ticked off the names in her head, pleased that she could remember all their names.

Sachi, Sazuki, Emiko, Kasai, Momoka, Yume, Madar. And herself.

The first school day at Mew Academy drew to a close.

* * *

**Did I mention earlier that I kind of disliked this chapter?**

**Well, I did. Disliked it, I mean. Just to clarify that. So if you disliked it, so did I!**

**I shan't write much here, since I wrote so much in the pre-A/N. Might I just say here, though, that I really like Yume. She's so rad, don't you think? I love how she just appears and disappears everywhere! -grins-**

**And Emiko... tee-hee. She's my personal Hermione Granger slash Aizawa Minto. Has anyone else picked up on that? She's a perfect mixture of the two! Except, at the same time, she's neither. She's EMIKO! -winks-**

**Baha-ha-ha!**

**Read and review, lovelies!**

**From this point on, the story will flow faster :)**

**Until the next update,**

**Cherrie-Sakura**

**xoxo**


	12. A1,P2,S1: Settling

**Hey Fictioners.**

**GUESS WHAT? We've finished Part One! -trumpets blare-**

**For anyone interested, Part One was titled: Mew Academy (wow, wouldn't have guessed that!) Part Two is titled: Cinderella. -kryptic smile- You guys will learn why later on, obviously! -grin-**

**Okay, so I'm not sure if I'm happy with how this chapter ends. Nonetheless, I do like this chapter. I can't pinpoint why. I just like it :)**

**Oh! And KYASARIN-FREAKLOAD! Your character WILL BE in the next chapter. I've worked it all out. She's definitely in the next one, so you can literally relax now. No more waiting :)**

**As promised, the story progresses faster now. -everyone reading MA cheers with relief- So you guys can actually sit back and settle now; there's no more frustrating slow-ness. Well, I take it back, there's some slowness in this chapter, but just the last bit.**

**So forgive me for the slowness towards the end of this chappie. It's pretty much another bout of History. Needed, but written begrudgingly, trust me. Writing that last part was a DRAIN of all my creativity and inspiration to write. Lawl.**

**I cut the chapter where I did because I sort of had to. The next chapter that follows is a virtual continuation of this chapter, but it simply would have been _way_ too long to write as one chapter. So... I've never ended a chapter on a speech note before. Another first for yours truly! :P**

**Read on, MacDuffers!**

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**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I own Akane, Sachi, Yume, Momoka, Emiko, and Rin :P**

**Dedications:**

**Story for Mew-Cuxie12. Chapter UNDISPUTEDLY for XxXChiharu-Chan-1000-SpringsXx. YOU. ROCK. I seriously can't believe you reviewed EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER of MA in one night, Chiharu-Chan-chan! That is some serious dedication, man! I admire you. You inspire me! And you make feel completely shameful for not being as dedicated a reviewer as you are. Lawl. Seriously, dudette. You are amazing. This chapter is for you. Literally. Thank you!**

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ACT ONE - PART TWO - SCENE ONE

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The first week at Mew Academy passed by like a blur. Every morning, Akane rose at half-past five, long before anyone else in either dorms, wandered quietly down the hall to the communal showers, which Kasai kindly directed her to on her second morning, and returned in time to prepare breakfast for everyone.

She made a careful note to present something new and different every morning, so no-one would be bored with her cooking. On Tuesday, she prepared steaming stacks of pancakes, on top of which she melted blobs of butter, and drizzled maple syrup. She would have completed her dish with balled scoops of vanilla ice cream, except the freezer was notably void of anything edible, so she contented herself with the resources available to her.

Wednesday, Kiseki declared, was Egg Day, so, taking this into account, Akane prepared cheesy omelettes, which everyone stared at with wide, curious eyes. Western food, she explained in response to Sachi's questioning, was more interesting and diverse than typical Japanese cuisine. She liked that she could experiment with Western dishes, and had always secretly felt somewhat restricted preparing only Japanese food back home.

On Thursday morning she experimented with another notorious American favourite – waffles. Unfortunately, the only way she could prepare them was to use the pre-prepared, frozen box of waffles one of dorm eighteen's girls brought in one evening. Despite her displeasure at having to offer processed food as a meal – she _much_ preferred home-cooked food – she compensated by whipping a container of cream and adding some fresh strawberries from what remained in the fruit drawer of the refrigerator.

By Friday, the stocks were suffering significantly. Akane peered in the bare fridge, chewing her lower lip thoughtfully, and rocked on her heels as she pondered what to do. She poked around in the small pantry – a cupboard above the sink – and dug around in the fruit and veggie drawers, managing to pull together three bananas, a half-full plastic tub of strawberries, two red apples, a kiwi fruit, a pre-packed tub of peaches in juice, and some rice crackers.

"Why don't you just make a fruit salad?" Kasai asked, walking into the kitchenette at her usual time of six fifteen, her long blue-black hair damp from her shower. Akane glanced at her, no longer surprised by her now-routine early morning appearances, and looked back to the fridge.

"... I already made a fruit dish," she replied softly, blinking slowly as her mind tried to conjure up a new recipe from her meagre supplies. Kasai ran her thin, pale fingers through her luscious hair, her enchanting, icy blue eyes thoughtful.

"I'm sure no-one will mind," she said eventually. "I think they'll just appreciate the fact that you've made them breakfast."

She smiled sweetly, and Akane allowed a small smile in return.

True to Kasai's prediction, the girls of dorms seventeen and eighteen didn't even care that they were being fed a meal they'd already had that week. Fruit salad and yoghurt seemed to be a popular dish with them; they chattered and gossiped happily while they ate. Akane, however, looked on with a small frown on her face. She'd have to make sure the refrigerator was always stocked enough for a variety of meals to be prepared during the week. She didn't want to disappoint anyone by repeating dishes.

As the days wore on, Akane learned more and more about the functioning of the dorm, courtesy of Sachi, who explained everything as they went along. In the bathroom, for example, there were two big wicker baskets – one for dorm seventeen, and one for dorm eighteen.

"These get emptied every Wednesday evening," Sachi explained, lifting the woven lid of dorm seventeen's and dumping in an armful of dirty laundry. "The Laundromat is on the first floor, so you have to take the basket out of the dorm and along the corridor to the lifts. It's easy, though," she added with a trademark grin. "The baskets have wheels, so all you have to do is push it along."

"We have a roster," Sazuki added, poking her head through the bathroom door, her brown hair swaying over her shoulder. "Every week it's someone else's turn to do the laundry. No-one can complain, because the job is rotated fairly."

"And this week it's Sachi-chan's turn!" Kiseki added happily, appearing over Sazuki's shoulder, a huge, cheeky grin stretched across her face. Sazuki grunted and caved a little, gripping the frame of the door with strained fingers.

"Ki-se-ki-chan," she struggled, "Will... you... get... off... my–GAAAH!"

With a strangled cry, her knees buckled and the pair of them went crashing to the floor. There was a short, stunned silence for all of two seconds before Kiseki extracted herself from the tangle and sat up – using poor Sazuki's back as a convenient cushion – and patted the brunette fondly on the top of the head.

"You're not very strong, Sazuki-chan," she commented a little sadly. Sazuki growled menacingly, the sound muffled by the fact that her face was pressed against the floor. She sighed deeply, her shoulders slumping in exhausted defeat.

Akane accompanied Sachi to the Laundromat, eager to learn how to work the washing machines and tumble-dryers. They walked along the corridor, Sachi chatting animatedly, Akane listening in a comfortable silence, their footsteps echoing around them with the squeaking of the basket wheels against the linoleum.

"We have to provide our own wash powder," Sachi explained as the lift doors opened to the first floor. "But other than that, everything's there for us to use."

She pushed the basket all the way to the far end of the corridor, past the doors that opened out onto the wooden veranda off the back of the school, and turned into a large, warm room with a concrete floor and white-tiled walls. Along either wall was a line of clean, white, round-windowed washing machines, above which were rows of equally clean, yellowy-cream tumble-dryers. There were another two rows of washing machines, back-to-back, in a line down the middle of the room. A simple, pale grey door was built into the far wall.

"There's a drying room through there," Sachi explained, wheeling the basket over to a washing machine. "You leave your wet washing in there overnight and collect it the next day."

Akane helped her sort the laundry into three piles – darks, lights, and colours (Sachi had been more than ready to throw all the clothes into one machine, but Akane jumped in and saved them before the disaster could happen). Then they loaded up three separate washing machines and Sachi showed her which settings to use.

"It's always warm in here," the blue-haired girl said conversationally, pouring a cupful of lemony-smelling white powder into each of the machines without really watching what she was doing. "The steam from the tumble-dryers keeps it heated round the clock. It's great for winter... Sort of sucks in summer, though. You practically melt in here!"

She flashed a cheerful smile and pressed the buttons on each of the washing machines, swiping her student ID card to get them started.

"We need to ask Shirogane-sensei about your ID card," she said thoughtfully, dropping onto the wooden bench that lined the immediate wall beside the entrance, and habitually picking at the sparkly red nail polish on her carefully-maintained, crescent-shaped nails. "You're going to need it – your ID card gets you tram tickets, and gives you access to these sorts of things – the washing machines and stuff."

Akane sank down gently beside her, too caught up in her thoughts to reply (not that she would have anyway). She was quietly worrying about her permanence at the Academy. It was becoming more and more obvious that she was different to the other girls, and she was growing increasingly concerned that the blonde-haired, blue-eyed headmaster had been wrong about her altogether.

It seemed ever more plausible with each passing day that he'd invited the wrong girl to the school. Akane was starting to firmly believe that there was nothing special about her at all, especially since she _still _didn't know what her animal or her powers were, despite having been tested and examined – two things that were making her feel significantly _insignificant _among her classmates.

Of course, her knowledge about Mew Academy and the curious students who attended it grew more with each class she sat through. During Tuesday's lunch period, the girls of dorms seventeen and eighteen held a group discussion, cramming around two tables to chatter and exchange details animatedly. Akane sat right in the middle, squeezed between Sachi and Sazuki, listening with burning curiosity and wide, brown eyes.

"My DNA is fused with that of the Karner Blue Butterfly," Sazuki explained, her hazel eyes sparkling. "I've always loved butterflies, so it didn't surprise me when Shirogane-sensei told me what my match was."

"_I _was," Sachi replied. "I'd never even _seen _a Sea Otter until he showed me a picture of it on his computer. He wasn't impressed at my reaction, I don't think." She giggled, her eyes nostalgic. "He said, 'Your DNA is merged with that of the rare Sea Otter', and I sat there and said, 'What?' with this _really _stupid, blank expression on my face."

The girls around the table laughed, before Kiseki piped up and said, "I'm part monkey!" She grinned widely at Akane, whose lips curved up in a small smile. She could have picked that one before the small, energetic girl had even given her a clue.

"Kiseki-chan, what exactly _is _your match?" Sazuki asked, frowning a little. "You've always just said 'monkey', without really explaining it. Not every monkey is endangered, you know."

"I know," Kiseki chirped in reply. "It's just easier saying 'monkey'. And it's true, as well!"

"You didn't answer my question," Sazuki pointed out dryly. Kiseki's face fell in confusion.

"Oh yeah!" she cried, perking up again. "Well, it's a Chimpanzee."

"Figures," Sachi muttered, so quietly only Akane caught it. She smiled a little at her blue-haired host student, who grinned when she realised she'd been caught.

"Mine's a Cheetah," Mika announced proudly, tossing her violet-streaked brown bangs out of her face.

"Nawww," Sachi cooed teasingly, and the other girl's expression fell, her eyes warningly guarded as she awaited what was coming. "Asato-kuuun's personal kitty-cat! How cuuute!"

"Oh my God, will you just _shut up_!" Mika shrieked, picking up a sticky clump of pasta from her plastic tub of udon(1) with her chopsticks and glaring at it for a moment, before flinging it at Sachi. The table fell silent, all eyes on the blue haired girl. The strings of noodles dropped from her forehead, plopping loudly on the tabletop. Sachi's black-brown eyes were fixed on Mika, a look of incredulity on her face. Mika stared back with wide, fearful eyes.

With two fingers, Sachi reached up and silently wiped the sauce from her forehead.

"Oh, you're on, Murakami-chan!" she cried suddenly, and she dug into her curry and tossed it at Mika. It splattered on her cheek. Mika screamed.

As the entire cafeteria watched on, the girls erupted into an enormous food fight, their shrieks, screams and laughter interrupted only by the loud splattering of food as it hit the table, the floor, the chairs, and each other.

Akane ducked as often as she could, avoiding flying rice balls and rolls of sushi. She managed to avoid most of the attacks, her uniform only stained once on the shoulder, where a stray splash of soy sauce went awol and hit _her_ instead of Sazuki. But when Kiseki deliberately kneeled up in her seat, reaching over to splatter squished banana in her hair, the fight came to an abrupt halt. Everyone froze wherever they were and turned astonished eyes to the monkey girl, unable to believe she'd actually attacked the shy newbie, who they'd been carefully avoiding hitting.

Kiseki grinned, a daring expression flashing in her brilliant emerald eyes.

Akane stared at her for a moment, her mouth parted in shock. The seconds ticked by as she faltered in her seat, wondering how to react.

Then she slowly reached with tentative fingers and picked up one of Kiseki's strawberries from her plate. Blinking up at the small, excitable girl, she extended her arm, reaching up to squish it gently against her cheek.

As everyone watched, struck dumb, she bit her lip, fighting a smile.

And giggled.

Within moments, food was flying once more. Akane felt the smile spread across her face as she shielded her head from the oncoming barrage of Japanese cuisine. She picked up pieces of beef from her lunch and tossed them lightly at whoever happened to be looking in the opposite direction, feeling, for the first time in her life, like she was having fun being a child.

But, of course, their chaotic war was short-lived.

"Girls!" a stern voice snapped loudly, and they all stopped again, glancing around. Yume was standing a metre from their table, her arms folded across her chest, her expression livid. Mysterious, black-haired Momoka peered out from behind her, her golden eyes sparkling with amusement.

No-one said anything.

"What in Heaven's name do you think you're doing?" Yume demanded, her voice a dangerous, silky whisper. Her silvery eyes bore down on everyone, piercing and frightening. Akane instinctively sank in her seat, her cheeks burning.

The cafeteria was silent; everyone watching on enthusiastically, like it was a gripping scene from a television show.

"Uh... we were just..." Sachi trailed off, unable to fight the laughter that sparkled in her dark eyes.

"We were–" Sazuki began, but Yume held up one elegant hand for silence, which she was immediately granted. Noone dared glance at each other; all eyes were focused on their elder, every stomach in the group dropping simultaneously.

"_All_ of you are going to report back here tonight after dinner," Yume said icily, her expression daring anyone to object. "And you are _all _going to scrub these floors until they are so clean they sparkle. Every single one of you," she spoke each word with careful, perfect clarity. The silence was so sharp a pin could have dropped and it would have rung clearly as it hit the floor.

She turned disappointed, silvery eyes to Akane, who was staring at the table in shame. "That includes you, Kikuchi-san."

Once again, Akane felt the overwhelming urge to sink through the floor take control of her. She glanced up at Sachi out of the corner of her eye, surprised to find her friend struggling to refrain from smiling.

"The bell is about to go," Yume announced silkily, deliberately not looking at any of her fellow dorm-mates. "All of you get up and go to your next classes. Now."

Without a word, the girls of dorms seventeen and eighteen pushed out their chairs – the metal legs scraped loudly against the shining marbled floor – and traipsed from the cafeteria, the stares of hundreds of students following their backs as they disappeared up the escalators.

* * *

"I was infused with a Dove," Onchou said quietly to Akane as they scrubbed the shining floor later that night. The girls had been paired off and assigned a specific area to clean. Akane and Onchou were on their hands and knees, crawling around in their uniforms with a bucket of soapy water and two big sponges.

Akane looked up at the other girl, willing her to continue.

"They say the animal your DNA is compatible with is a representation of what kind of person you are," Onchou said, scrubbing at a mark that was stubbornly refusing to be removed. Akane considered this for a moment. The theory certainly seemed to apply to Kiseki, the ever-boisterous monkey girl, and Sachi, the playful water puppy. She wondered, for what seemed like the thousandth time since her arrival, what her animal match would be, if she even had one.

"It _is _just a theory, mind you," Onchou added presently from beside her. "No-one really knows how or why we're matched with specific endangered animals. It just sort of... happens."

Her pretty blue eyes watched Akane for a moment while she pondered.

"... So... What is Komosaki-san's match?" she asked shyly. Onchou smiled and rested back on her knees, tucking a stray brown ringlet behind her ear.

"Kasai-san is compatible with the Snow Leopard," she said, wringing out her sponge in the bucket. "And Naomi-san is compatible with the Ocelot."

"... Ocelot?" Akane asked curiously.

"It's another kind of big cat," Onchou explained, leaning over to scrub again. Akane watched her thoughtfully for a moment, before resuming her own scrubbing.

"Madar-sama is compatible with the Sandpiper – a bird," Onchou went on, seemingly reading the shy girl's mind. "And Rin-sama is compatible with the Black-Footed Ferret."

"... Suzuki-san?"

"Orange-Belted Bumblebee."

"... Tanaka-san?"

"Green Turtle."

"... And the Cyniclons?" Akane inquired curiously in a soft voice, her eyes intent as she learned.

"The aliens aren't compatible with animal DNA," Onchou replied. "They're not exactly like us when it comes to that sort of thing. They don't transform into another being. They have other ways of fighting. Didn't you notice there are no Cyniclon students in your classes?"

Akane nodded. She had noticed, but it hadn't seemed significant at the time.

"They have separate classes to us," Onchou continued. She sighed and sat up again, tossing her sponge into the bucket with a splash. "I think we're done here."

* * *

The disappearance of Tanaka Emiko that first Monday evening remained unsolved to Akane. None of the other girls ever spoke about it, and she never asked anyone. Emiko was in class again the next morning, and returned to the dorm that night, and the following evenings. She disappeared again on Friday night, with no explanation and no warning, as it had been the first time.

Every afternoon at four o'clock, when her classmates met up in the Library to study for an hour, Akane drifted away among the shelves to the Japanese History section, when Emiko was waiting dutifully for her. She would look up and smile in greeting, then she would turn to a new chapter of their History textbook, 'A Mew History, for Ninth Graders', and they would study it together.

Akane learned all about the history of the Mew Mews and how their existence came about. As it turned out, a man named Dr. Shirogane – Shirogane-sensei's father, Emiko explained – began research on a project he called the 'Mew Project'. He conducted studies and experiments, delving into the possibilities of a special kind of human being who's DNA could be merged with the DNA of an endangered animal, empowering the human with supernatural abilities and strengths.

According to the textbook, Dr. Shirogane's research wasn't put into practise due to his uncertainty about the compatibility of human and animal DNA, and that, when a fire struck his family mansion, burning it to the ground, both the Doctor and his wife perished, along with all his years of work.

What was saved in the blaze was protected by his young, orphaned son, Shirogane Ryou, and his elder companion, a young man named Akasaka Keiichirou, who was left as the guardian of the professor's son. The pair moved Dr. Shirogane's research into a laboratory underneath Cafe Mew Mew, a restaurant which served as a cover for Shirogane Ryou's operations, which he conducted for many years, continuing his father's research in his place.

What Dr. Shirogane couldn't accomplish from uncertainty, his son completed in dedication to him. In the early twenty-first century, Shirogane Ryou successfully injected five teenage girls with the DNA of five endangered animals: Momomiya Ichigo, with the Iriomote Wild Cat; Aizawa Minto, with the Blue Lorikeet; Midorikawa Retasu, with the Finless Porpoise; Fong Purin, with the Golden Tamarin Monkey; and Fujiwara Zakuro, with the Grey Wolf.

The five girls were discovered one by one, and eventually banded to become a group of teenage superheroes known as 'Tokyo Mew Mew', whose sole purpose was to protect the environment of the Earth from damage and destruction. The project was prompted by alien activity beyond the Earth's atmosphere. The movement of the race known as the 'Cyniclons' was detected by Shirogane, whose main mission it became to protect the Earth on behalf of his father.

It was believed that the Cyniclons had once inhabited the Earth, long before the Human reign began, and that they were driven from the planet for reasons that have long since been lost in history. For whatever reason, the Cyniclons returned to re-claim the Earth as their own, only to find it had become inhabited by another species.

The first Cyniclon attack, organised by the alien commander, Deep Blue and led by one Kisshu, whose tireless determination caused many a problem for the young girls, was met by Tokyo Mew Mew, who were ready to fight back. The assailants on the Earth persisted, each attempt more dangerous than the last, and, each time, Tokyo Mew Mew was successful in defeating their new enemy.

Recognising their repeated failures and the unexpected strength of their foes, which the Cyniclons hadn't accounted for in their plans, Deep Blue assigned two more of his men in the attempts to repossess the Earth, Pai and Taruto. Joining Kisshu, the trio continued to threaten the existence of Humans on the planet. However, their attempts were in vain; Tokyo Mew Mew proved a tougher foe than the aliens could have ever expected, unswerving in their determination to protect the Earth and the Humans who inhabited it.

Impatient at the consistent failures of his troops, Deep Blue launched a full-scale attack himself, occupying the body of a Human male, one Aoyama Masaya, coincidentally the boyfriend of Toyko Mew Mew leader Momomiya Ichigo, to disguise his presence among the Humans. After a long and strenuous battle, Toyko Mew Mew emerged victorious for the last time, and, admitting defeat, the Cyniclons returned to their home planet.

Human existence on the Earth continued, and the girls of Toyko Mew Mew, having successfully completed their purpose, lost their powers over time, returning to the normality of Human life. Shirogane Ryou and Akasaka Keiichirou abandoned the Mew Project for a short period, until the Cyniclons, now led by Kisshu, made contact, requesting a peace treaty between the two races. The suggestion came to head between the elite leaders of the Human races, and the treaty was passed, not a decade after the Cyniclon attack on the Earth.

Akane had, of course, learned the rest of the story in her first History class – she had learned about the peace treaty being passed in order to protect the Earth from the permanent power of the Sarzoid army. She had learned that the combined Cyniclon-Sarzoid forces had been successful in their invasion of the Earth, that they had controlled life on the planet for three years before the Sarzoids had grown greedy, and that the Human-Cyniclon armies had fought back to regain power.

But now she learned more about the Sarzoids themselves. Emiko showed her some of the rare photographs taken of the mysterious race – the cousins of the enemy now turned ally. Akane stared at the glossy pages of the History textbook, her brown eyes drinking in the tall, slender, skeletal forms of the Sarzoids; their large, slanted eyes, their small, pointed elfin ears, their wide, thin-lipped mouths. What struck her most were the charcoal ash-black of their leathery skin, and the stormy grey of their long, silky hair.

They were, in all literal sense, the complete opposites of the Cyniclons.

She learned of their incredible patience, in contrast to the general impatience of the Cyniclons; of their tireless determination in battle; of their feral, uncompassionate nature. They were creatures of war, nothing more. The main thrill of a Sarzoid's existence was a good fight. They were built for battle, with tough skin like armour and a stamina that enabled them to fight tirelessly for days without nourishment.

Akane stared at the black face, at the beady eyes glowering with a terrifying insanity, at the sharp teeth snarling in a twisted growl.

She quietly closed the book.

"No-one really knows why Shirogane-sensei began Mew Academy," Emiko said thoughtfully, breaking the shy girl out of her moment of fear. Akane glanced up at her, thankful to be distracted from her thoughts on the Sarzoids.

"... What do you mean?"

"Well, one has to wonder why we're here," Emiko replied, resting her chin on her propped hand. She gazed unseeingly at the thick spines of the history books, her thoughts elsewhere. "Why would he create hundreds of Mew Mews for absolutely no reason? It just doesn't make sense."

Akane watched her silently, wondering what in the world she was talking about.

"I think he knows," Emiko continued, her voice lowering to a sort of excited hush. She turned her midnight blue eyes to Akane's face.

"... Knows... what?" Akane whispered timidly, eyes wide.

"He knows that the threat is still out there," Emiko replied. "He knows that the Sarzoids are a tireless race. That once they become fixed on an idea, on a mission, they won't give up until they succeed. I think he knows that, one day, we'll be needed."

"... Needed?"

"To protect the Earth, the way Tokyo Mew Mew did," Emiko said, a little exasperatedly, rolling her eyes as if to say 'duh'. "To be prepared when the times comes."

Catching Akane's bewildered expression, she elaborated, her expression magnified by the shadows cast by the lamp on the desk.

"The Sarzoids are going to attack again one day, Akane-chan," she said seriously. "And Shirogane-sensei wants us to be ready to fight them when they do."

* * *

**-X-Files music-**

**Ooh, spooky! Didn't the chapter turn so SERIOUS? O_O Re-reading over that, the whole mood of the chapter shifts! -shrinks in seat-**

**My bad, peeps. Or is it my good? I have no idea! XD**

**Oh, and before I forget! **

**(1) udon - a kind of Japanese noodle dish :)**

**I think I covered a fair bit in this chapter, which is strange because its considerably shorter than the others. Hurr hurr. -goes off to ponder this-**

**So, a big welcome back to Kish's Kittie, who is apparently NOT DEAD! (yet)**** -collective sigh of relief from all author/esses of TMM-**

**Man, I am a good, dedicated updater, ne? ****-moment of big-headed-ness- **

**I've written like three chapters in a weekend! O_O ****That's especially impressive for me, who took a year to update the first six chapters of this story. -nervous laugh-**

**So, be v happy with me while it lasts, because it won't. Lawl. **

**Not much else to say this evening... ****Read and Review, lovelies! :D**

**Until the next update,**

**Cherrie-Sakura**

**xoxo**


	13. A1,P2,S2: Tuesday

**I know, I know. **

**O.M.F.G something must be seriously wrong with Cherrie-Sakura. Maybe she has some disease that's making her vomit chapters every second day!**

**Here's another chapter, Fictioners! I have no idea where this dogged dedication is coming from - I get up in the morning and catch a train and a bus to work, I work for five hours, I catch a bus and a train home, and then I just... WRITE. **

**O_O**

**It's quite amazing, really.**

**Anyway, I have to be quick today. Parents are being bleargh. -growls angrily-**

**Ooh! Kyasarin-freakload and ROSELIACOOL: YOUR CHARACTERS ARE IN THIS CHAPTER! (K-F: Don't take the character's treatment of Aizuka-san personally. RC: I changed your character a little bit. But I REALLY like her, so I'm sorry if you don't! :P)**

**Read on, MacDuffers! Enjoy!**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew. I own the Author OC Cast.**

**Dedications...**

**Story for Mew-Cuxie12. Chapter for ROSELIACOOL. No hard feelings about the Incident. I offer you this dedication as a peace offering/apology for the misunderstanding on my behalf. I hope you like it!**

**

* * *

**

ACT ONE - PART TWO - SCENE TWO

* * *

The greatest difficult Akane had during that first week of settling into life at Mew Academy was undisputedly adjusting to her new classes. While she gradually grew more accustomed to feeling at home in the large square room that housed the girls of 9B, she couldn't help being startled every time a Cyniclon teacher teleported suddenly among them, and she couldn't help noticing what an odd education it was at the Academy.

The classes she sat through we so far from the normality of the standard classes she'd taken back home; every new class she attended she entered with bated breath, praying silently that it wouldn't involve her discovering something else she hadn't known about before she arrived. Within a mere few days Akane had begun to grasp the enormity of the secret world she'd been innocently oblivious to. There was so much she had to learn, so much she had left to discover.

It started with Tuesday morning's first period Biology and Genetics class.

Akane followed along quietly behind Sachi and Sazuki, who were, as usual, conducting a very fast-paced gossip-session, chattering animatedly with their hands. Way up ahead of them, Kiseki whizzed along, her arms tucked close to her body as she dodged fellow students. Akane watched her with soft brown eyes, amazed at her daring nature and confidence.

They made their way from the adjoining white bridge, along the corridor and past their normal classroom, much to Akane's confusion. Sachi caught her expression and grinned.

"Bio-Genetics is held in the labs, Akane-chan," she explained merrily. "They're upstairs."

Akane blinked slowly, blushing a little, and tailed her friends up a marble spiral staircase at the far end of the corridor. Unsurprisingly, they emerged onto a floor almost identical to the one they'd come from; it had shining floorboards and was brightly lit, courtesy of the many large windows through which the sun streamed, pooling in huge, warm golden puddles along the hall.

The laboratory, Lab5, was a large, rectangular room, quite long, with a simple linoleum floor and practical benches for experiments. Each bench had a small sink and a cupboard underneath, where Akane presumed the apparatus were stored. Most of their classmates were already seated in the strangely quiet room, perching on the high-legged stools behind the benches in groups of two, their books resting, untouched on the shining, marble bench tops.

Akane noted that Sachi and Sazuki immediately fell silent upon entering the room.

Up the front, the tall, lean headmaster rested casually against the blackboard, his arms folded across his muscular chest, his striking blue eyes fixed lazily on his students. His blonde hair caught in the light, messy and scruffy as it had been the first time Akane had net him.

"You're late."

It was a very frightening statement. Akane's heart sank and she shifted uncomfortably where she stood. Both Sazuki and Sachi were painfully quiet. Kiseki tried unsuccessfully to silently remove her colourful rollerblades; they clattered loudly against the lino, disrupting the chilling silence.

"Sorry, Shirogane-sensei," Sachi and Sazuki chimed in unison, bowing their heads politely. Akane quickly mimicked them, her face as red as a tomato. She could feel the many eyes of their classmates fixed on her.

"Sit down," the blonde man instructed, pushing off from the wall and approaching an opened book on his desk. Akane milled awkwardly in the doorway, her stomach twisting horribly as Sachi and Sazuki headed to their desks, leaving her utterly alone and completely clueless as to what she should do.

"Now," Shirogane began with a small sigh, letting his gaze sweep over his class. "Open up to page fifty-two. We're looking at cell microbiology today."

His gaze fell on Akane, who had been on the receiving end of many curious, furtive glances from her classmates while she wavered in the doorway, once again wanting – now more so than ever – to sink through the floor and disappear.

"Oh, right," he said, like he'd completely forgotten her altogether. "Kikuchi, come get your book. You're sitting with Aizuka – third left."

Feeling the gazes of dozens of pairs of eyes following her, Akane flitted up to his desk and quickly took the book in his outstretched hand. Hugging it to her chest, she quickly turned and made her way to her seat, sinking into it as fast as she could. The chair scraped loudly against the lino and almost toppled; she gasped, flustered, and gripped the edges of it, the stifled giggles of her classmates sweeping around her from all sides.

Red-faced, she let her bag drop gently to the floor and slid the textbook onto the desk, fixing her fringe, which had tumbled into her warm-cheeked face.

"9B," Shirogane's voice said in a loud warning, and, like in Pai's History class, everyone was quiet. He glanced up, seemingly searching for something. "Mori. Read from the subtitle."

As the girl, Mori Hanako, began to speak, her girlish voice the only sound to break the silence of the lab, Akane snuck a glance at her lab partner – the girl occupying the seat beside her, and was surprised to find it was one of the students she recognised from dorm eighteen.

She was small and painfully, _painfully _thin; her uniform – though it seemed suited for a doll – hung loosely from her tiny figure. Her hair was short, soft and razored, a bright, blood red; her bangs falling across her face, covering one of her eyes. The other was large and round, innocent-looking, but sadly dull – a lifeless turquoise. Her skin was pale and sallow, her mouth a small, tightly drawn line. She sat hunched in her seat, her shoulders slumping, like her back and small shoulders were a shield for her delicate organs.

Sensing Akane's curious chocolate gaze, she flickered her visible eye shyly to her face, glancing away almost as quickly. Akane blinked at her curiously, wondering what she should say; if she should say anything at all. Not a hair had moved out of place – she'd only shifted her blue-green gaze. But in that single, fleeting moment, Akane had seen straight into the girl's reality; she'd read the nerves, the fear, the insecurity in her frightened face. She was like a vulnerable lamb.

"So what's the difference between a normal Human cell and a Mew Human cell, then?" Shirogane's voice said, dragging her out of her distracted stupor. Akane snapped her focus to the teacher, realising in horror that the class had well started, and she'd missed a good deal of it already. She had wasted the opportunity to take notes on whatever the blonde man had said! Mentally kicking herself, Akane silently reached down to the bag at her feet and took out her notebook and a pen, scolding herself for being so absent-minded.

As yet, none of the students had answered his pending question. Akane glanced around furtively, hoping there were other students as lost as she was. She caught a lot of uninterested expressions, but few that seemed confused.

"Yes, Tanaka?"

Emiko lowered her hand, resting it on her opened notebook. She'd copied out every word he'd said in a small, neat cursive.

"A Mew cell has two Nuclei, whereas a Human cell only has one."

_Two what?_ Akane thought, alarmed.

"Tanaka's right," Shirogane agreed, his casual stance calm and composed. He looked like a retired male supermodel standing on a classroom set for a film. His hands were shoved in the pockets of his casual faun suit pants, his white shirt comfortably loose. "Anyone know why?"

When he spoke his voice was almost lazy.

"Because Mew DNA and Human DNA can't co-exist in one Nucleus," he answered himself, when it was apparent no one planned on offering an answer. "It's virtually impossible. So a Mew cell is equipped with _two _Nuclei; one for normal Human DNA and one for fused DNA." He surveyed the class, cocking one blonde eyebrow. "Write, girls."

He rolled his blue eyes as multiple sets of hands began scrabbling to open books and grab pens. Akane gazed thoughtfully at the headmaster-slash-biology teacher, comparing the striking eyes of the man before her with the azure-blue eyes of the boy from the hot springs. There was no doubt in her mind. They were definitely related, after all.

But then another face floated to her mind. A face she'd only seen for a few short, embarrassing moments in the cafeteria on her first day. That boy had had hair the exact same shade of blonde as Shirogane-sensei... The same sun-kissed, honey-platinum. And his eyes had been blue, too... literally the same shade of azure as the dark-haired boy's.

Were they related, too?

"So, what's everyone doing tonight?" Shirogane asked casually, strolling the length of his desk in relaxed strides, gazing calmly out the window. The girls of 9B glanced at each other in confusion.

"Anyone?" he asked, glancing back at them with a smirk of amusement. When he was met again by a heavy silence, he pivoted on the spot, turning back to them, his eyes laughing.

"I'll tell you what you're doing," he said conversationally. "You're all writing essays on cell structure, with neatly labelled diagrams. A thousand words by tomorrow."

The bell rang, cutting into the stunned horror of the students.

"Class dismissed."

Bio-Genetics was followed by Art, which they traipsed up to the fourth floor for. The Art room was basically one big craft workshop, with all the easels set up in two rows, forming a big circle around a square pedestal. Lining the walls of the studio were cupboards and shelves teeming with art supplies; paper, paint, markers, glue, materials, plasticine, clay, charcoal... And it was all terribly organised. A large wall-to-wall blackboard up the front was covered in random notes and seemingly unrelated pictures of love hearts, butterflies, flowers and quite badly drawn kittens.

A slender young woman with cherry red hair pulled up in a messy high ponytail at the back of her head was drawing big swirly lines on the board, her back to the door, when the girls of 9B arrived. She reached up on her tiptoes to draw in the top corner – she wasn't particularly tall – and the piece of chalk snapped loudly, causing her to jump and give a startled, "Nya!" of surprise. Cringing at the giggles of the girls milling around the easels, she turned slowly, her expression embarrassed.

"Hello!" she greeted cheerfully with a nervous laugh. She grinned at the class, her peachy face merry. She was dressed in a pretty, baby pink, puff-sleeved dress, with a black artist's apron tied securely around her waist, looped up around her neck. It was covered with spatters of multi-coloured paint, and there were streaks of smudged blue and green on her arms, cheeks and forehead.

"We're painting today!" the happy young lady announced brightly, and Akane realised with incredulity that _this _verystrange, very chirpy woman was, in fact, their teacher. The redhead held up a palette and several tubes of coloured paint. She grinned again, and squeezed one of the tubes a little too tightly; the lid popped off and paint splurted everywhere. With a rather unladylike 'Ack!', she juggled all the tubes, trying to avoid getting paint on herself, and ended up dropping the whole lot of them. Paint splodged all over the lino; an array of multi-coloured squiggles.

"Uh... just start painting, everyone!" the lady chirped awkwardly, still smiling. "I'll just... it's no big drama! I'll clean it–WAAAH!"

She'd stooped to pick up the fallen tubes and had hooked the strap of her smock on the corner of her wooden easel, where it had lodged. The easel, the glass pots of greying, dirty water and the brushes that rested on it, toppled to the floor with an almighty crash, dragging the ditsy redhead down with it.

No-one said anything. Everyone's mouths had dropped open.

"I'm alright!" The woman's reassuring call was muffled by the debris trapping her on the floor.

"It's okay! Just start painting, everyone!" she said again, and the students obediently drifted away to find smocks and painting utensils. Akane watched the woman throw the easel off herself with a frustrated groan, her hands literally _covered _with rainbow paint from where she'd thrown her arms out in front of her to break her fall, and she reached up to pull her fringe out of her eyes, smearing paint all over her forehead.

Sachi appeared beside her, bouncing excitedly on the balls of her feet. She held out a smock and a palette of paint, which Akane took with gentle hands.

"... Thank you."

"My pleasure!" Sachi babbled, setting up her easel. "What are you going to paint, Akane-chan?"

Akane hesitated, staring at the blank piece of paper in front of her. To be honest, she'd never really had a flair or an interest for painting... or art in general, really. She turned to Sachi with a small shrug.

"I'm going to paint a monkey!" Kiseki announced, dancing over enthusiastically. Akane eyed the blobs of paint on the hyperactive girl's palette warily, predicting splatters of yellow and green on her face and Sachi's. Thankfully, she escaped being attacked by a paintbrush of paint; they were saved by Sazuki, who appeared shortly afterwards.

"Wow, Kiseki-chan," she said sarcastically. "How in the world did I know you were going to say that?"

"You knew I was going to say that?" Kiseki asked, amazed. Sazuki and Sachi laughed. A small smile pulled up the corner of Akane's delicate lips.

It was amazing how utterly opposite the two morning classes had been. Where Shirogane-sensei's class was silent, Art – which was taught by Momomiya-sensei, as she introduced herself to Akane, after cleaning up the ridiculously huge mess she'd made – was a loud buzz of chattering voices. Where Shirogane's class had been tense, Momomiya's was relaxed. Where Shirogane's was nerve-wracking, Momomiya's was almost a joke; it was such a fun, lazy, decidedly pointless period. Certainly, as Akane peered around the room, the number of girls sitting back on their stools in conversation with their friends seemed to vastly outnumber the amount of people actually painting.

Sachi was among the few dedicated Art students. While Kiseki and Sazuki splodged paint on each other's pages, she sketched loose outlines on her paper with a thin piece of charcoal. Akane sat back on her seat, having long since abandoned her own easel, and watched the blue-haired girl as she held the thin brush between her fingers with careful, practised delicacy, brushing slow, sweeping lines of paint onto her page. She altered the pressure of her brush, changed how fast or slow she swept the bristles across the canvas, was vigilant in her careful mixing of colours. She was absolutely pedantic about having the exact shade she wanted.

By the time the bell rang, the plain piece of paper on Sachi's easel had become a masterpiece of colour; a beautiful, angelic face smiled out of the canvas; a lovely girl frozen in her moment of joy, her happy story captured by Sachi's brilliance with a paintbrush.

"I dunno how she does it," Kiseki commented thoughtfully, standing beside Sachi with her head cocked to one side as she contemplated the blue-haired girl's creation (her own attempt at a monkey turned out more like a brown blob with a curly tail holding a yellow stick). She tapped her chin comically.

"Amazing," Sazuki agreed, assuming a pompous accent. "Truly _spectacular_!"

"Aww, shut up," Sachi laughed, pushing their shoulders playfully. Emiko snorted derisively as she stalked past, shooting a disdainful glance at the painting. Sachi growled after her, her face reddening.

"Just let it go, Sachi-chan," Sazuki advised. Sachi ripped the painting from the easel, smiled fondly at it, and scrunched it up into a ball, tossing it towards the bin. Akane gaped in shock.

"Let's go!" Sachi chirped merrily.

After Tuesday lunch's epic food fight, Akane found herself in a room that made her heart swell with excitement. It was enormous, white-walled, tiled-floored, and magnificent. It was a huge, expensive-looking kitchen, divided up into smaller kitchens, where paired students worked together in class. The mini-kitchens were each equipped with a stove, an oven, a small refrigerator, a sink, lots of cupboards and some decent bench space.

"Welcome," the tall, brunette head chef greeted as they poured in from the hall. He had long arms and long legs, and a very lean profile. His thick, long hair was tied back in a low ponytail, which poked out from under his tall chef's hat. He was wearing a high-necked white chef's uniform, the plain black pants protruding from underneath the jacket baggy and loose. His warm brown eyes were friendly; his face a cheerful, charming smile.

"Kikuchi-san?" he called, as all the girls began to divide up and trail off to their working stations. Akane approached the tall man, feeling a relieving comfort in his presence. He smiled at her.

"My name is Akasaka Keiichirou," he introduced himself, reaching for a thick cookery book on the bench beside him. "I teach Hospitality. I hope you'll be very happy in my class."

Akane took the offered book with a small smile, and bowed politely to him.

"... Thank you."

"I've paired you with Yamamata-san. She's quite a delightful girl. I'm sure she'll take good care of you," Akasaka said, with another charming smile. Akane blushed a little, her heart fluttering in spite of herself. With a gracious gesture of one long arm, the lovely chef led her over to one of the mini-kitchens, where a girl anxiously awaited, her expression eager. She was positively quivering where she stood, looking like she was about to explode from her contained enthusiasm.

"Kikuchi-san," Akasaka introduced, "this is Yamamata Yaomi. Yamamata-san, this is our new student. I'm sure you'll be an excellent cooking partner."

"Oh, I will!" Yaomi agreed, beaming. She turned her sparkling, bright blue eyes to Akane, who suddenly realised where she'd seen her before.

It was the girl from the lift; the one who had squashed her against the wall.

"So, hey!" Yaomi greeted, as Akasaka smiled fondly down at them and wandered away to make sure his other students were setting up properly. "I'm Yaomi! You can totally call me Yaomi-chan, because we're going to be friends, right?"

She hardly paused before continuing, which Akane was relieved for – she hadn't known how to answer her confronting question.

"So, I'm, like _really _sorry about that lift thing the other day," she babbled, taking out bowls and ladles and whisks and clanging them into a messy pile on the bench. "I really didn't see you in the corner of the lift–" she trilled a girlish, twittery laugh "–Will you, like, forgive me?"

"... Yes," Akane murmured, overwhelmed by the girl's invasively perky personality. She instinctively reached for the pile of mess her kitchen partner was making, habitually sorting it all into a neat line before them.

"I'm really, _really _sorr–Oh you do? Well that's great!" Yaomi cried in delight, pulling the satin blue ribbon out of her blue-highlighted brown hair, and re-tying it. "You're a really forgiving person, Akane-chan! I think it's a good thing, personally!"

Akane glanced at her nervously, following her along the bench, neatening her piles of mess as she created them.

"So how do you find the Academy?" Yaomi asked eagerly, whipping out a pad and a sparkly blue pacer from her blazer pocket. She clicked the top of the pacer in rapid succession until the point of lead poked out from the nib.

Akane paused, wondering how to word her answer, but again she didn't even have time to think; Yaomi put the words into her mouth.

"I'll bet its intimidating, right? Moving to a completely new school in the middle of the semester? What did it feel like, transferring over at such an odd time?"

"I–"

"I heard you moved from the country! How different is your new life here? What was it like for you, being taken from such a bland environment and thrown into the chaotic Tokyo life?" Yaomi asked eagerly, her eyes flashing with excitement. She scribbled away at the notepad, her fingers curled tightly around the pacer.

"I–"

"Is it true you have no idea what your generic match is?" Yaomi demanded in a hushed whisper. "Is it true the injection process didn't work on you? What does it feel like being the only student to be unsuccessfully injected? What caused you to faint the other day in Tech class? Were you overwhelmed by the surging powers of the students around you?"

Akane couldn't even catch what she was saying. Her mouth bobbed open and closed like a goldfish's, her expression an astonished bewilderment. The questions were flying from the slender, inquisitive girl faster than she could process what they actually meant. An alarming discomfort swept through Akane. How in the world did this perfect stranger know so much about her? Was she really that perceptive?

"Alright, ladies, that's enough chatter for now," Akasaka interrupted the class cheerfully, and the merry conversations died down to a respectful quiet, as all attention focused on the charming, brunette chef.

"Today we're going to prepare a simple fruit flan," he announced with a smile, which many of his students instinctively returned without realising. "Please turn to page fourteen, and read the instructions _carefully, _ladies. We don't want any more pudding disasters."

He waited patiently while all the girls started opening their books and exchanging excited comments about the lesson's menu. Akane silently turned to the page, her chocolate eyes skimming lightly through the ingredients. Beside her, Yaomi was writing furiously on her notepad. Akane tried her best to ignore it as she rummaged around in the cupboards, gathering all the ingredients they would need for their flan.

"Now remember, ladies," Akasaka called from the front bench. "The more milk you put in, the softer the flan will be. Don't use too much milk."

He smiled encouragingly at them all.

"Now, start with the eggs – always start with the eggs," he said, holding up a round, brown egg as an example. Akane reached for the half-dozen carton of eggs resting on the side, handling them carefully, so as not to risk dropping them. She cracked one into a glass mixing bowl, reaching for the milk.

"So, do you, like, want my help, or are you okay?" Yaomi asked, appearing in Akane's peripheral. She was resting her elbows on the bench, watching with curious blue eyes as the shy girl expertly mixed in the ingredients to the recipe. Akane didn't reply.

"I'll take that as a 'no', okay?" Yaomi said, beaming. "You must be a pretty good cook, Akane-chan! You really seem to know what you're doing! How did you learn to cook so well?"

The questions kept coming like a barrage, her hand flying across the lined notepad.

Akane mixed the egg, milk and sugar together, concentrating on perfecting the recipe. She poured the mixture into two cute, plain white teacups she found in the cupboard and placed them inside the over, turning it onto high heat.

"So how do you know all this, Akane-chan?" Yaomi asked curiously. "Did you come from a chef school? Did you enter competitions back home? Or did you inherit your skills from someone in the family? Is it, like, generic or something?"

"... My grandmother taught me," Akane murmured softly, turning down the heat of the oven. Yaomi leapt on this little piece of information like it was the answer to the million-dollar-question.

"Oh, your grandma did, did she? Did she teach you everything she knew? How long did she teach you for? What was her best ever recipe? What's _your _favourite recipe?"

"How are things going over here?" Akasaka asked, strolling over, a friendly smile on his face. His brown eyes were filled a patient curiosity. He watched as Akane removed the cups from the oven, taking off the black oven mitts to retrieve a can of whipped cream from the small refrigerator. He smiled knowingly as she shook the can a few times, tilting the can upside down to spray a perfect swirl of cream on the top of both flans.

"Very good, Kikuchi-san," he complimented, impressed. He examined one of the cups of flan. "You have quite exquisite presentation. And your recipe is very delicate..." He trailed off, a thoughtful look in his brown eyes.

"But what's missing...?" he murmured to himself.

"... Strawberries," Akane replied softly, her hands clasped as she awaited his judgement on her cooking. A smile lit up his face.

"You're absolutely right," the tall man agreed, delighted. "All it needs is a single strawberry on top of the cream! Excellent, Kikuchi-san!"

He seemed genuinely pleased.

"... Sliced," Akane replied. A confused expression crossed his face.

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that."

"... The strawberry..." Akane indicated to the swirl of cream. "... It would need to be sliced."

Akasaka laughed merrily.

"May I?" he asked, reaching for the cutlery drawer. Akane blushed and nodded as many pairs of eyes turned to watch the head chef taste test the flan. He savoured it slowly, rolling it around his tongue.

"You could have used a fraction more sugar," he decided thoughtfully. "Half a teaspoon, or so. Otherwise, Kikuchi-san, this is quite a masterpiece for your first lesson."

He beamed at her. She reddened under his approving smile, willing the bell to ring so she could escape being the centre of attention, which she had miraculously ended up being – again. Luckily for her, she only had to wait about twenty seconds.

"How'd you do it?" Sachi demanded, linking arms with her as they headed back along the corridor. Akane gazed at her, not understanding.

"The flan. How did you get it so perfect?" Sachi elaborated. "Mine always flop!"

"... Too much sugar," Akane murmured softly, smiling gently at the blue haired girl. A wondrous expression dawned in Sachi's dark eyes.

"Hah! Well there you go. Too much sugar makes the flan flop!" She laughed. "I'll have to try less sugar next time."

She pouted suddenly.

"But it tastes better with more sugar!"

The final class for Tuesday was held in the same corridor as their usual classroom. They traipsed back down the spiral staircase – the culinary rooms were on the same floor as the science laboratories – and wandered along to a room a few doors up from 9B's homeroom. Akane was astonished to find, upon entering, that there were no desks or chairs in the room; that the plain grey carpet was completely bare. The blackboard was untouched, and one wall was decorated with floral scrolls depicting ancient Japanese heroes of legend. Akane gazed curiously at a scroll of the Peach Boy for a few moments, before Sachi tugged on her arm and led her further into the small, square room.

All the girls were clustered around a series of tall cupboards, the doors thrown open. They were pulling things off the shelves, passing around plain pink and black, square cushions. Akane took one that was offered to her and hugged it to her chest. Across the room, Yaomi waved enthusiastically.

"Why is Yamamata-san waving madly at you?" Kiseki asked curiously. Akane glanced at her, blushing habitually.

"... She's my Hospitality partner."

"No way!" Sazuki gasped, an awed smile on her face. "Oh, poor you!"

"... Who is she?" Akane whispered, risking a quick glance at Yaomi again. The chattery girl was focused on someone else, babbling away, her pad out once more, pacer poised.

"She's the ninth grade gossip queen," Sachi explained, joining the trio with some more cushions. "If anything ever happens, she'll be the first to know."

"And she writes the ninth grade column for the Academy Gazette," Sazuki added.

"... The Gazette?"

Kiseki nodded eagerly, grinning all over her cheeky little face.

"The weekly Mew News!" she quoted, and Sachi and Sazuki laughed.

"The Gazette is a campus newspaper – student produced," Sazuki explained. "The lead journalists from each grade write articles every week and submit them to be published in the paper."

"The whole thing is overlooked by the Student Body President," Sachi added. "And maintained by the Student Representative Council. There's one representative from each year level who helps organise events and functions at the Academy."

"Oh..." Akane trailed off, feeling dumb and insignificant again. Everything at the school was so organised, so detailed!

"And Yamamata-san is one of the ninth grade's biggest writers," Kiseki said knowingly, nodding, her eyes wide. "If you're not careful, she'll make a Scoop out of you!"

"... A... Scoop?" Akane trailed off, not liking the sound of it at all.

"Big news," Sachi translated. "If it's big enough, it'll make front page, and then _everyone _in the school will read it on Monday morning when it gets distributed to the dorms. It's every writer's dream."

"The Journalist Society works all weekend to meet the Sunday evening deadline," Sazuki said. "They put so much time into that stupid paper. Yamamata-san is obsessed with it. It dictates her entire existence! The whole time she's searching for something to make into a Scoop."

Akane shuddered, glancing once more at the bubbly blue-streaked-brown haired girl, who grinned back, waving enthusiastically again.

"Good afternoon, ladies," a delicate, refined voice greeted in an articulate declaration of arrival. The voices in the room fell silent and all eyes turned to the door, through which a poised, elegant lady had just walked. She was slender and feminine, with sophisticated beauty and a subtle manner of aristocracy.

Akane suppressed a gasp of admiration.

The woman had skin like porcelain; peachy pale, and flawless. Her lips were plump and petite, her eyes large and beautifully almond-shaped; a rich, chocolate brown in colour. She had thick, dark eyelashes, a small, pointed nose, and thin, slender eyebrows. Her hair, a rich black-blue, was thick and luscious, pulled up gracefully behind her head in a perfect, round bun.

Dressed in a high-necked, velvet blue gown the colour of the sky at midnight, she crossed smoothly to the centre of the room, surveying her students with an air that was both critical and meaningful at the same time.

A jet black ribbon was tied comfortably around the neck of her dress, the legs falling down her modest chest, and the long, velvet sleeves – puffed a little at the shoulders – ended in big cuffs trimmed with black lace. The dress pulled in dramatically at the waistline, accentuating her impossibly slight figure, before flowing out from her small, delicate hips and tumbling to the floor where it brushed lightly against the carpet in gentle folds. The toes of the shoes that peeked out from underneath the hem were a shiny black – patent leather, no doubt.

"Please," she said, a note of sarcasm tinging her aristocratic voice, "take your seats."

Akane glanced around, watching her classmates placing their cushions on the ground, and bending quietly to kneel on them. She copied them, sitting on her feet and fidgeting a little with the hem of her plaid, pleated skirt.

The elegant woman proceeded to do the same, retrieving a golden, braided cushion from a different cupboard and kneeling at a small wooden table she dragged to the centre of the room.

The class was dead silent as she consulted her role.

"Kikuchi?" she inquired, looking up expectantly. Akane slowly raised one hand; it trembled slightly in the air before the lady nodded curtly, and she whipped it back into her lap, red-faced once more.

"Welcome," the teacher said simply. She clasped her small hands and addressed the class, her posture as poised as a statue as she perched on her cushion.

"This afternoon we will be examining the art of the Japanese Tea Ceremony," she announced. "It's is an important aspect of Japanese Tradition – brewed into our culture, and it is vital that we embrace it as a part of who we are as a people."

The only sound that broke the silence that followed this impressive speech was the rustling of the cushions against the carpet as several people shifted their positions uncomfortably.

"I will teach each and every one of you how to properly brew a perfect pot of herbal tea," she continued. "While I come around the circle individually–" the students had formed an almost perfect ring around her "–I expect the rest of you to conduct your conversations using respectful, Geisha voices."

With a pointed glance that swept around the ring of students, she pursed her lips and glanced back down at her role.

"Aizuka, you're first."

Akane watched, listening to the voices of the students around her rise gently to a low, polite hum, as her tiny, frail, red-haired Bio-Genetics partner rose unsteadily from her cushion and, picking it up, padded lightly to the little wooden table, where she positioned herself opposite the teacher. The gazes of many of the girls followed her for a moment, and many of the students engaged each other in quick gossip sessions, their gazes – some curious, some amused, some strangely cruel – fixed on the poor, wretched little soul in the middle of the room.

"... What is wrong with Aizuka-san?" Akane asked in a faint murmur, wondering if she were asking a question that could be considered impolite. Sachi, sitting on her left, and Sazuki, beside her, turned surprised expressions to her. Akane blushed.

"... She's very quiet."

Sazuki looked as though she wanted to laugh, or say something, but whatever it was, she swallowed it, exchanging a very meaningful glance with Sachi; one that Akane didn't fail to catch. Her blush deepened.

"No-one really knows what Aizuka's deal is," Sachi replied in a low voice. She wriggled a bit on her cushion before she continued. "There are lots of rumours about her. Some people think she was beaten as a child, and is so afraid of being touched now that she refuses to speak to anyone."

"Some people," Sazuki added, "believe she's a rich heiress, and thinks herself above everyone else, so she won't mix with us."

"Other people say she's a lesbian," Kiseki joined the conversation. Beside her, Umeko rolled her purple-blue eyes, smoothing her honey-blonde hair.

"Stop gossiping, the lot of you," she hissed, before turning to politely respond to a question put forward by the student on her other side.

Sachi, Sazuki and Kiseki took her exit from the conversation as a sign to disregard what she'd said about gossiping, and so they continued as if she hadn't spoken at all.

"They say she's an orphan."

"Or that she came to the Academy straight from rehabilitation... That she's just been cured of a terrible drug addiction."

"_I_ heard she was an alcoholic!"

"No, it was definitely drugs. Heroin, I think."

"There are other rumours, too. There's one; that she once went wild and started attacking people, so they kept her in a psychiatric ward for two years."

"That one's ridiculous," Sachi scoffed. "As if that's actually real."

"It could be," Kiseki argued. "No-one really knows. That's the whole point!"

"Lower your voice, Kiseki-chan," Sazuki whispered. "Remember, _Geisha Voices_. Anyway, I bet Yamamata started that one."

"Probably," Sachi agreed. "Or Tanaka." She shot a scathing glower in the raven haired girl's direction.

"Nah, doubt it," Sazuki replied. "Tanaka-san doesn't gossip."

"Oh!" Kiseki gasped, something dawning in her eyes. "What about that one where everyone said she was anorexic?"

"Yeah, but that one's obvious," Sachi replied, rolling her dark eyes. "Everyone can see she doesn't ever eat anything."

"Why is that?" Kiseki wondered, her eyes flicking to the girl now sitting back in her place in the circle, and back to Sachi's face. Sachi snorted.

"I don't know. Why don't you go ask her?"

"Okay!"

"No, Kiskei-chan, she was just kidding!" Sazuki yelped, reaching up to yank Kiseki back onto her cushion. She turned disapproving hazel eyes to a snickering Sachi.

"Don't even risk it, Nakamura. You know she takes everything literally."

"Kikuchi?" the refined voice of the teacher called, and Akane immediately rose from her seat, stumbling a little as her numbed legs struggled with the sudden movement. Shaking her feet a little to get the blood flowing again, she reached down and gingerly picked up her cushion, carrying it over to the little wooden table.

The woman watched her with wistful, deep brown eyes as she resumed her leg-numbing kneel on the other side of the table.

"Welcome to Japanese class," she greeted more formally, her voice smooth and gracious. "I'm Aizawa-sensei. I hope you plan on taking this class seriously, my dear, because if you don't, the door is right there."

Satisfied with the blush that flourished over Akane's cheeks, she lowered her slender hand from its gesture towards the door, resting it back in her lap.

"... I will not misbehave," Akane promised softly, bowing her head politely.

"I wouldn't argue that," Aizawa commented wryly, that slight touch of sarcasm lacing her voice again. Akane glanced up at her instinctively, surprised to find her delicate mouth curved up in what was undoubtedly a small smirk.

"Shall we?" the blue haired teacher gestured to the tea set resting on the table before her, arching one slim eyebrow, awaiting Akane's response. The shy girl nodded quickly, and they began practising the tedious, yet strangely rewarding art of the Japanese Tea Ceremony.

"Ugh," Sachi moaned, staggering up the corridor a few minutes after the bell had rung. Classes for the Tuesday were finally over, and the girls were heading back to dorm seventeen to dump their bags and meet in the cafeteria for the detention Yume bestowed upon them for their lunch time food fight. "I hate Japanese. Every time we go there my feet fall asleep."

"Well, you're just going to have to practise sitting still for long periods of time until you're good at it, aren't you?" Sazuki sneered, walking along perfectly normally beside her. Kiseki had stopped up ahead, her knees faring about as well as Sachi's, and had plonked down on the floor to pull on her skates.

"This will help!" she declared.

"Uh... Kiseki-chan, that will probably only make it worse," Sazuki disagreed. "I _really _wouldn't do that, if I were you."

"Well, then be glad you're _not _me!" Kiseki giggled, using the wall to help her stand up. She pushed off, rolling away down the corridor.

"Oh, believe me," Sazuki muttered under her breath, folding her arms across her chest. "I am."

Several annoyed shouts echoed down the hall towards them, along with a sharp squeal that most probably came from Kiseki. The sound of wheels clattering against stairs rang sharply in their ears, followed by several more angry shouts of protest.

The commotion continued for a few more seconds, growing louder with each passing moment as Kiseki seemingly collected more students in her epic tumble down the stairs, and then all was very, very silent.

"... Sorry!" Kiseki's voice floated up to the second floor in a pain-filled moan. Sachi and Sazuki roared with laughter. Beside them, Akane allowed a small smile of amusement to grace her lips.

Day two's classes down.

Three days to go.

* * *

**Okay, I'm done for this evening. I'll post something soon when I write the next chapter.**

**Don't have a lot to say tonight!**

**Read and Review, Lovelies!**

**Until the next update,**

**Cherrie-Sakura**

**xoxo**


	14. A1,P2,S3: Placeless

**Hey, Fictioners!**

**Zomg she's actually back! After over a month of absence, she's randomly appearing with another chapter! What the...?!**

**Yes, yes. I know. It's been a very, very long time. Too long, in fact.**

**I only have one explanation (well, two...): U.N.I.V.E.R.S.I.T.Y. Man, that place sucks the life out of you! No kidding! And even though it's fun as, there's such a huge workload; SO MUCH READING!!! The other excuse, of course, is that any spare moment I have I end up writing on the Forums here, instead of actually writing. Or I just beta everyone else's work ;P**

**Whatevs. Sit back and enjoy this chapter, people. I'll have the next one up soon, hopefully :)**

**(Oh, beware: There's a little Emo paragraph towards the end. Well, Akane couldn't be placidly content the whole time! XD)**

* * *

**Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew (-cry-)**

**Dedications...**

**Story for MewCuxie12. Chapter for all those whiny, nagging friends of mine (aka Mika and Zeph). Thanks a lot, bakas! XD**

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* * *

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ACT ONE - PART TWO - SCENE THREE

* * *

"Here, take this."

Akane quickly held out her hands and took the neatly folded pile of material offered to her. Sachi dumped the clothes in her arms and flicked her blue fringe out of her eyes.

Akane stared down at the clothing, and back up at her friend.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Sazuki asked from behind her. "Go try it on."

It was Wednesday morning, and they were standing in the female change rooms in the gymnasium. It had been a strange morning; upon awakening and helping themselves to the first official Egg Day omelette breakfast, the girls of dorm seventeen had lounged around on the sofas, moaning and complaining about the day ahead.

Akane had, of course, had absolutely no idea what could be so terrible about Wednesday that warranted such dread from her dorm-mates, but had figured she would soon find out anyway, and so she didn't ask anyone to explain it to her. When the bell rang sharply, it seemed everyone sighed with collective reluctance before dragging themselves up from the cushions, somehow managing to make the simple movement look so painful and tiresome; like such a chore, which she couldn't comprehend.

She'd followed them down the stony path that curled away from the buildings, listening to their early-morning banter, and had let Sachi lead her to the Admin Office, where the blue haired girl had bounced around in her usual, enthusiastic manner, opening drawers and pulling out various items of clothing.

Akane now held the bundled collection in her pale, skinny arms.

She drifted off in search of an empty cubicle to have some privacy while she changed her clothes, pretending the curious, furtive glances from the other ninth grade girls weren't really aimed at her.

She pulled off her school uniform and folded it neatly, yanking on the black-trimmed, bright pink t-shirt and matching tiny black underwear-like shorts of the Mew Academy sport uniform. On the back of the t-shirt were the printed characters that, translated, read 'Mew Academy'. The socks she pulled on with her tattered sneakers were a simple, plain white.

"Oh, how _cute_!" Sazuki cooed when she reappeared, beaming widely at her. "You make that uniform look exactly like something out of a Manga!" Akane shifted her weight uncomfortably, her hands clasped nervously in front of her, wondering what on earth could possess someone to find her scrawny legs and significantly curve-lacking figure 'cute'.

"Come on, come on, come on!" Kiseki cried impatiently, practically bouncing on the balls of her feet as the wild, boundless energy that pulsed through her little body threatened to explode out of her.

"Okay, just hang on a second, Kiseki-chan," Sachi replied with a tiresome sigh. "Let us pack away our stuff, first!"

It seemed the very moment they were done, Kiseki managed to grab them and literally _drag_ them from the change rooms. Akane followed along behind, as usual, comforted by the fact that the monkey girl, at least, seemed to be quite at ease with whatever class it was that was about to begin, which eased her own apprehensions somewhat.

It turned out to be some kind of extreme physical education class, as it was. The girls from both 9A and 9B – for the two classes came together every Wednesday morning for a shared 'PE' class, as it was fondly referred to by Sachi and Sazuki – sat in clusters on the bleachers in the very same hall where they'd had Kisshu-sensei's Practical class just a few days earlier.

They had just dropped down to wait for the class to begin when a face popped up in front of them with surprising swiftness. Sachi hadn't even opened her mouth to talk to Sazuki yet.

"Kikuchi-san!" it greeted brightly, and Akane leaned back from the intruder of her personal space. The smiling face of Yamamoto Yaomi swam into focus.

"How are you feeling this morning?" she asked enthusiastically, ever-present notepad and blue pacer in her hands. Like the others, she was wearing the sport uniform; her hair tied back in a high ponytail. Akane instinctively tensed up, awaiting the stream of intimidating questions.

Yaomi didn't disappoint.

"Are you feeling uncomfortable at all?" she asked, her brilliant blue eyes sparkling as she ferreted around, trying to extract any useful information from her nervous victim. "Are you aware that this was the very same spot where you fainted a few days ago? Do you remember that? Does it make it strange to be in here again? Do you feel dizzy at all? Is there something about this place that causes you to feel unstable? Are you going to pass out _right now_?"

"No comments," Sachi snapped sourly, frowning heavily at the eager reporter. "Kikuchi-san won't be answering any questions this morning."

Yaomi turned to the blue haired girl with a disappointed pout. She quickly attempted to mask it, replacing it with a bright smile.

"What about _you_, Nakamura-san? Have you got anything to say about the recent math test held by Taruto-sensei? How did you find question fourteen B? Which method of application did you use? Do you think this time you'll pass? What's it like continually failing repeat tests?"

Sachi flushed furiously as the tittering giggles of girls around them chorused into waves of laughter.

"Ugh! Get lost, Yamamata!" she snapped fiercely, to which Yaomi sprang back, astonished. Sachi glowered at her.

"I mean it! None of us have any answers to your stupid questions!" she growled. "So just beat it already, why don'tcha?"

Yaomi sighed and scarpered away before any more verbal abuse could befall her. Sachi relaxed back against the bleacher and uncurled her fists, shooting scowls in the direction of anyone who continued to giggle.

"Stupid, gossiping low-lives!" she grumbled, folding her arms across her chest. Sazuki fought a smile beside her, fixing her gaze pointedly on the tiny dots that were the nails in the floorboards below them. Akane blinked at her blue haired friend, unsure of how to react to her little outburst.

Sachi glanced at her and immediately softened her expression.

"Sorry, Akane-chan," she sighed, the tension ebbing out of her voice. "That girl just drives me mental sometimes."

Akane allowed a small smile to curve her lips, before she turned to sweep her gaze over the sea of ninth grade students, all chattering animatedly in little cliques.

"I wonder what we'll have to do today," Sazuki said thoughtfully from beside her. "I hope it's not too hard."

Sachi snorted derisively.

"Hard?" Kiseki inquired, sounding curious.

"As in, 'more than five minutes of physical exercise'," Sachi replied, laughing. She yelped suddenly, which Akane guessed meant that Sazuki had just elbowed her in the ribs.

"That's not what I meant!" Sazuki protested, as the other two chortled. "I _meant_, I hope they don't make us run to the other side of Tokyo and back, or climb to the top of the residential building using nothing but a belaying system, or swim across the North Pacific Ocean to Alaska, or something."

Akane's heart leaped in horror.

"... We have to swim to Alaska?" she asked in a soft voice, her big eyes filled with worry. She'd never even been out of the country before, and they had so much expected of them already?

"Oh, Akane-chan, no!" Sachi cried quickly, amid Kiseki's peals of laughter. "She was just exaggerating!"

Akane let out a shaky breath of relief and forced a smile she hoped was reassuring. She knew she'd paled quickly; she could feel the blood returning to her cheeks as she flushed with embarrassment at being so gullible.

"I'm sorry, Akane-chan," Sazuki apologised, her eyes twinkling with restrained amusement. "I didn't really mean they'd _actually _make us swim all the way to Alaska." She was no doubt fighting her laughter so as not to make the shy girl feel ashamed... Which, of course, only made her feel utterly inadequate altogether.

Akane stared down at her shoes, wishing her face would pale again.

"Good morning, everyone!" a bright, bubbly voice cried cheerfully. "I hope we're all bright-eyed and ready for our weekly work out, na no da!"

The owner of the painfully happy voice was a rather short, ridiculously enthusiastic young lady with bright yellow hair and big brown eyes. A perpetual beam was stretched across her fresh face, and she bounced on the balls of her feet as she walked, as if she might start dancing at any moment. Her muscles were tight and lean under her sporty, black and pink t-shirt-and-shorts ensemble, and she wore a whistle on a thread around her neck.

Her eagerness was infectious; Akane felt her grim mood start to lift almost immediately. She blinked curiously, watching with interest as the little bundle of energy started marking the attendance sheet, shouting each student's name with an almost annoying amount of vigour.

"Kikuchi-san!"

"Y-yes," Akane stumbled, dragged out of her fascinated reverie at the sound of her own name being called. The girl put Kiseki to shame with her early-morning excitement.

"Welcome to Mew Academy, na no da!" she exclaimed, still beaming. "I'm Fong-sensei! As long as you've got your uniform, which you have, you're ready to go! There aren't any books for this class; all you need is lots of energy, na no da!"

"... Uh..." Akane trailed off, fumbling into an embarrassed silence. What was she meant to say to that? The teacher didn't seem to mind, however; she simply powered through the rest of the role, before pulling a peaked cap on over her short, messy blonde ponytail.

"Okay, everyone! Up, up, up! It's time to warm up those muscles and get your blood pumping, na no da!" she called, ignoring the sighs and groans of her students as they dragged themselves to their feet and slumped down from the bleachers. When all the girls were assembled in clumps around her, she addressed them again.

"Now, spread out, everybody! Let's make some nice lines, na no da! Make sure that when you stretch your arms out, they don't hit anyone else's! We don't want any accidents, na no da!"

She made them stretch what Akane imagined was every single muscle in the body that could be stretched. She felt muscles being used that she didn't even know she _had, _and found herself twisted into positions she wouldn't have ever have considered possible for a human body to shape.

She'd been alarmed when she'd had to move away from Sachi and Sazuki into a wide space by herself, where everyone could scrutinise her, but as she looked around and saw everyone else's uncomfortable expressions, she didn't feel so self-conscious. At least she wasn't the only one feeling incongruous.

Fifteen minutes, dozens of strange positions, countless uncomfortable muscle-strains, and endless shouts of 'Hold, two, three, four! And relax, two, three, four!', 'Keep your knees straight, na no da!', 'Heads up!' and 'Don't let your arms slacken, na no da!" later, Akane was feeling utterly worn out, and they hadn't even started the actual class yet!

When at last they were allowed to relax, she had aches in her arms, legs, back and neck, and the muscles in her tummy were burning and spasming unpleasantly. She was regretting never having been involved in sports before; her weak muscles were feeling the strain of being inoperative for so long.

But of course, the stretching was just the beginning.

After being helped up by a widely grinning Sachi, she joined the horde of ninth grade girls – most, she was secretly pleased to note, looking about as worn out as she felt – being led outside by Fong-sensei. They followed the springy teacher to a wide, grassy field behind the gymnasium, where she ordered them alphabetically and sent them off to follow the edge of the field in small groups.

"... What... exactly... are... we...?" Akane forced out her question between pants, her feet pounding against the soil as she jogged beside Sazuki.

"Doing?" Sazuki puffed airily, finishing her question for her. "We're _running_!"

Seeing it would be too difficult to get more of an answer than that, what with breathing being much more restricted than normal, Akane contented herself with focusing on keeping her breathing even and her gaze on the feet of the group in front of them. Someone had once told her that running was easier if one fell into a rhythm.

But she wasn't sure that the advice still applied when one was running infinite laps for hours on end, which was, coincidentally, what they ended up doing that Wednesday morning, until they stumbled to a stop at the long-awaited end of the class, and collapsed, red-faced, on the grass, their breathing ragged and their knees trembling violently. Fong-sensei stood above them, her expression astonished, like she couldn't fathom how running hundreds of laps could possibly tire them out so much.

"I... hate... P... E..." Sazuki declared breathlessly, rolling over onto her back and gasping for air. Sachi was too exhausted to reply, Akane was too overwhelmed to even hear, and only Kiseki seemed to have any amount of energy left, be it just enough to sit up from the ground.

Akane was starting to wonder whether it would have been better if they'd just swum to Alaska instead. At least it might have been a little more useful than running in circles until they could hardly walk.

* * *

Physical Education was followed by a class Sachi called 'Theory'.

"It's basically a period of being taught all the How To's of being a Mew Mew," she explained, as they forced their jelly legs to carry them back up from the gymnasium. "You know... Do's and Don'ts, proper etiquette, how to behave in certain situations, and things like that. It's not terribly difficult, but it's not exactly _interesting _either."

"Most girls just sit there in awe of the teacher, anyway," Sazuki threw over her shoulder.

"... Awe?" Akane inquired curiously in her soft voice, but Sachi merely smiled secretively.

"You'll see," she promised.

And, indeed, she did. For even though she'd come from the most rural of towns in Japan, and had seemingly lived under a rock for fifteen years, in regards to the realities of the modern world she was becoming accustomed to, even Akane had to stifle her small gasp of recognition when the door opened and _the _Fujiwara Zakuro swept into the room, as elegant and majestic as a queen.

She was as tall as the pictures had always made her seem, with hair that fell down her back in a luscious waterfall of rich violet, and skin as pale and smooth as porcelain. Her midnight blue eyes were wistful and owlish, framed by thick, beautiful black lashes, and her mouth was as small and perfect as a plum.

Dressed in a fitted black blazer-like coat, a white high-necked skivvy, a pair of black and white zebra-striped jeans, and some Cuban-heeled leather boots, she was a pillar of style; a figure of fashion and breathtaking beauty. As she strode across the room, the girls sighed collectively in appreciation.

If Akane hadn't felt inadequate before, she felt damn well like a slug in comparison to a butterfly now. And, as if it hadn't been bad enough merely being in the presence of someone so famous and esteemed as Japan's fashion idol, she felt even worse when everything she taught went straight over her head.

"The transformation phase," Fujiwara began, her deep voice as smooth as a ripple-less lake, as rich as velvet. Forty-odd hands immediately started writing. The teacher turned her midnight eyes to the class, and she surveyed them for a moment with a kind of comfortable coolness. Akane felt her lips part in wonder; how in the world had she been so blessed as to end up with someone as respected, someone as universally loved and admired as the legendary Fujiwara Zakuro for a teacher? It was totally beyond her, and she felt she did not deserve to be sitting in the presence of someone so wonderful.

It was very difficult, however, to grasp what she was talking about – summoning an _energy_ from within, counting to four before willing the _tingle _to spread through your veins, training your attention to be fixed entirely on the _image _imprinted in your mind of the essence merged with your DNA while the process completed itself – when she couldn't relate to it. She'd never felt the _energy _orthe _tingle _Fujiwara mentioned, and she'd never had anything _imprinted _in her mind, so she struggled to picture the process as the teacher described it. All around her, pens scribbled hastily against paper as everyone rushed to take note of every little thing she said.

By the end of the class, Akane felt absolutely terrible.

Sachi must have sensed this, upon seeing her gloomy expression, for she tried to cheer her up by talking about what kind of animal her DNA would be compatible with, when the time eventually came for it all to work out. Akane tried to be positive, for her friend's sake, but she couldn't shake the depressing feeling of knowing she was weird and different from everyone else.

Especially when all the students around them were chattering excitedly about only waiting three seconds instead of four, or waiting two seconds too many, and sometimes letting their minds wander to what they were having for dinner that day, instead of staying focused on their imprinted image while they transformed.

"You know what," Sachi said conversationally as they walked along the hallway. Akane glanced at her, awaiting the rest of her sentence. "I think you'll be a cat."

"... A... cat?" Akane murmured, blinking slowly. Sachi nodded cheerfully.

"M-hmm! I think you'll be something like... A snow leopard, or a cheetah, or a... _ooh! _A white tiger, or something!" she babbled, her arms clamped around her books. Akane walked beside her in silence, doubtful that she was even compatible with _anything, _let alone something as powerful and awesome-sounding as a _white tiger._

"I still think she'll be a mouse," Sazuki argued, joining their conversation. "She's so cute and delicate and little, don't you think?" She smiled warmly at Akane when she said this, but the auburn haired girl struggled to return it.

"What if she's not a land creature at all?" Kiseki wondered, rolling along slowly and smoothly today, keeping up with them instead of zooming ahead, as usual.

"What, as in, a sea creature?" Sachi asked. Kiseki shrugged and tossed her wild curls over her shoulders. Sachi and Sazuki looked at Akane as though they were seeing her in a new light.

"No, I definitely think she's a land creature," Sachi decided firmly, after a long pause.

"But if she _were_ a sea creature..." Sazuki said thoughtfully, trailing off while she thought. She smiled when she reached her conclusion. "She'd be a seahorse!"

"A seahorse?!" Kiseki laughed, and the three of them were quickly swept up in a long-winded argument, none of them noticing when Akane subtly slowed her stride and stealthily dropped behind them. She followed along in their wake, gazing gloomily out the windows across the grounds at the tall skyscrapers of Tokyo in the distance, and wondering if she'd ever truly fit in at Mew Academy.

* * *

The last of the 'first classes' Akane had to endure was Friday morning's English class, which took place directly after Hospitality (they spent the period carefully crafting heavily beaten egg whites and lots of sugar into curly meringues, which they watched over vigilantly as they sat in the oven) in their home room. Akane was sitting silently in her seat with her hands folded in her lap, listening quietly to Sachi and Sazuki's exhausting argument about which colour was the better; orange or purple – Sazuki sat firmly on purple – when their teacher finally made her appearance, six minutes late to class.

She bustled through the door, a hurried mass of green hair and textbooks, which her frail-looking arms were clamped tightly around. She scurried to the desk up the front and dropped the pile of books with an audible sigh of relief, reaching with her fingers to push her big round glasses up her nose.

Then she realised the entire class had fallen silent upon her entry and were watching her in amusement (well, the majority of the class; Akane's expression was one of pure curiosity). She gasped, snapped up straight and clawed for the role. In her nervous haste, her glasses slipped from her nose and plopped onto her books, at which many giggles were stifled.

Her face the colour of a tomato, the teacher took a deep breath, cleared her throat, and, with as much dignity as she could muster – which didn't seem to be a lot – she returned her glasses to her face and picked up a pen to mark the attendance sheet.

Akane studied her quietly while she called the names of her class mates. She was quite a tall woman, with a gentle, womanly figure shrouded by her plain baby blue cardigan and calf-length grey skirt, which she wore with criss-crossed stockings and rather boring slip on brown shoes. Her curves were delicate, her chest modest, her arms and legs pale and weak-looking. Her long, thick green hair was tied in a loose plait that fell over one shoulder, and behind her glasses her big blue eyes were gentle. There was a distinct vulnerability to her, perhaps in her tender expression or her fragile countenance.

Akane liked her immediately.

"K-Kikuchi?" she eventually called, in a soft, angelic voice. "Miss Kikuchi?"

"... Yes." Akane's reply was her usual quiet murmur. She rose from her seat – the eyes around her swivelled to glance at her, in what was fast becoming routine fashion – and drifted silently to the front of the room.

"I'm Midorikawa-sensei," the green-haired lady explained, smiling shyly as she held out a copy of the book they were studying. "Welcome to English."

"... Thank you," Akane replied, taking the book, bowing her head, and returning to her seat. She felt the soft eyes of their teacher on her back the entire short walk back, and it unsettled her stomach a little. She'd found that almost all of the teachers had stared at her curiously upon introduction, and was beginning to wonder if there was something she should be concerned about. Why did they all seem so intrigued by her? Well, aside from the obvious fact that she was the sole student in the school with no powers whatsoever...

"E-everyone! Please... Please stop talking! Please be quiet now!" Midorikawa-sensei was calling feebly from up the front, when at last Akane was dragged from her silent moping stupor. She looked up to find the class deeply immersed in chatter everywhere she looked; like in Taruto-sensei's mathematics class, Midorikawa-sensei didn't seem to have established any sort of control over her students. She was standing up the front with her arms hugged around her own copy of the textbook – 'English, A Ninth-Grader's Guide to Modern Western Language; 6th Edition' – a dismayed expression painted on her soft face.

"9B!" she tried again, unsuccessfully. She chewed her bottom lip as her eyes swept over the ocean of girls blissfully ignoring her presence. "Girls, _please_!"

Akane remember Sachi saying something about English being a 'bludge' class – not that she really knew what the word 'bludge' meant; she could only assume it meant something along the lines of 'un-educational' – on the first afternoon when they'd met, but she hadn't thought she'd actually _meant _it. But it seemed now that Sachi hadn't been lying; the more Midorikawa-sensei tried to capture the class' attention, the more fruitless her attempts were, and the more she lost heart, until eventually she collapsed into her seat and sighed dejectedly, gazing glumly at the book in front of her.

And so, Akane's first English class played itself out in such a fashion – with students entertaining themselves at their gloomy teacher's expense – until the bell finally rang, and forty-odd chairs scraped loudly against the linoleum at once.

Akane sat silently in her seat, wondering what to do. It was embarrassing, sitting there when everyone around her was already up – especially when her classmates kept looking at her in surprise – but the idea of just _leaving _the class when she literally hadn't learned _anything _and hadn't taken any notes and didn't even know what the homework was so unappealing that she couldn't bring herself to move.

"Akane-chan, come on," Sachi called, coincidentally making the decision for her, pulling her up out of her seat. "Let's go!"

"...B-But..." Akane trailed off as her friends dragged her towards the door. Sazuki turned to her obligingly, seeing Sachi was too busy weaving between the desks and ensuring there were no collisions.

"... What about homework?" Akane asked in a small voice. Kiseki cocked her head, as though she'd never heard of it before. Sazuki laughed pleasantly.

"Well, you see," she began, pausing to word her sentence in her mind before she spoke it. Umeko took the opportunity to appear beside them and speak for her.

"If the entire class avoids writing it down, and no-one does it, then Midorikawa-sensei has two options. She can either keep the entire class in detention and send us all to a remedial English class, or she can just let it slide. And, come on, look at her. As if she's ever handed anyone a detention in her entire life!"

"... But–"

"Just let it go, Akane-chan," Sachi advised over her shoulder, still dragging her along. "It'll be so much easier if you just do what everyone else does."

"Yeah," Sazuki added, nodding. "Midorikawa-sensei doesn't fail us, so don't worry."

Akane glanced over her shoulder as they pulled her through the door, and caught a split-second image of Tanaka Emiko standing at the teacher's desk, talking to their teacher and writing something in her student diary.

It might not have sat right with Akane as she was forced to leave the classroom, but her worries ebbed away at the sight of Emiko's raven hair. Although forty-eight of the students ignored the English class, she was pretty sure there was one who paid rapt attention; one who she would just happen to meet with later that evening during their Study Session...

* * *

Of course, it didn't take Akane too long to notice the striking names of her teachers, and realise that they were already familiar to her. In about as short a time she linked the five female teachers – Momomiya, Aizawa, Midorikawa, Fong, Fujiwara – with the girls from quintet superhero team Tokyo Mew Mew; the idea that their names matched perfectly was simply too obvious to consider coincidental. The notion that she was being taught (albeit not very well, in some cases) by the original heroes of the twenty first century blew her mind away, leaving her feeling incredibly small, horribly insignificant, and downright _blessed_.

But that was nothing compared to the shock realisation that her Cyniclon teachers, Kisshu, Pai and Taruto, were, in fact, _the_ three initial enemies of the humans; the three aliens who began everything that ever happened between the two races. When she first came to this conclusion she felt the blood drain from her face, and her knees caved underneath her. Luckily for her, she was in the dorm at the time, and she collapsed onto one of the sofas. Those around her panicked, thinking it another repeat of her episode in Practical class, and started touching her forehead and checking for pulses, shouting her name in her face and slapping her cheeks to 'wake her up'.

Sazuki was the first to realise that she hadn't actually fainted; that she'd just gone into a state of shock. This was because, amid all the pulse-checking and temperature-taking, she was the only one to actually _look _at Akane's face and realise that her eyes were still open. Water was immediately sent for, and Akane began to quickly recover from the surprise the knowledge had instilled, stammering her heated apologies for her strange behaviour and blushing furiously, at which point everyone relaxed again.

The classes repeated themselves; Akane had each subject twice a week. The best class was, by far, Hospitality, despite her being stuck with Yaomi again ("How many times have you left your home town? Have you ever been to Tokyo before? Have you ever been _anywhere _before? Is there any reason why you haven't travelled much? Do you have a fear of cars? Or of trains? Or buses? How about flying...?") because she found the creation of edible dishes enjoyable, and as effortless as speaking Japanese; and because Akasaka-sensei was simply too nice for the class to be the least bit intimidating.

The worst classes were undoubtedly Theory and Practical. If Akane had thought Kisshu-sensei's first Practical class had been bad, she'd had no idea of what was coming. To her own personal relief, she did not faint in her second lesson. But since she had no powers, she was painfully restricted to watching her fellow students as they executed their transformations. She sat in the bleachers with her books – the only one dressed in the school uniform, for the students were required to wear the sport uniform for the class – and listened to the repeated calls of 'Mew Mew So-and-So, Metamorphosis!' echoing in the hall. Her heart sank a little more with each shout; it was like each transformation 'phrase' – as she'd come to recognise them – was a personal reminder of how much of a failure she was.

But, despite being a depressing class, it was also the most interesting. She watched on with curious chocolate eyes as her friends took their turns transforming into their 'Mew' forms, which she noticed varied somewhat for each student. All the girls transformed into the basic 'transformation uniform', as it was called – the fitted grey dress and matching long-sleeved bolero – but some of the girls had ears, and some had tails, and others again had wings.

Sachi, for example, had a fat brown tail that magically spurted from the base of her spine and hung behind her legs, furry and shiny; like it was wet, and long whiskers sprouting from either side of her nose. Kiseki, on the other hand, had a set of fuzzy, orange-brown ears in place of her own. Sazuki and Umeko both sported wings – Sazuki's big butterfly wings a dappled mixture of purples and blues, Umeko's small, round and flaxy, like a thin membrane, which hummed a quiet buzz when she hovered (which Akane noted was about all she could do, since her wings didn't seem to work as well as Sazuki's). Mika, when it was her turn, produced a very nice pair of spotted, triangular golden ears and a long, thin, matching cat-tail, and, when she was called upon, Emiko's skin became faintly scaly, shining with a greenish tinge in the light. Yaomi, who bounced forward eagerly, adopted a bushy fox tail in reds and browns, and a set of ears that perked up when she got excited. And skinny little Aizuka (Akane realised she didn't yet know the poor girl's first name) sprouted a thick, furry muddy-brown tail and fuzzy cat ears to match.

The transformation phase itself was highly interesting; about as interesting as the end product was – to Akane, anyway. When each girl was called forth for her turn, she stepped out of the long line against the wall and shouted the transformation phrase, at which point from somewhere on her body (Akane couldn't quite work out where, even though she watched each transformation with eagle-sharp eyes) brilliant white light exploded, engulfing her body entirely. Now a silhouette of dazzling light, she twisted and turned – seemingly of her own instinctive accord, for none of the girls needed to be told to move – until the light faded, and she became visible once more, now in her 'Mew' form.

The whole process took about ten seconds altogether, and the de-formation process was even shorter. The girls didn't even need to summon their original forms; they just took a breath, closed their eyes and, in a flash of white light, they were normal again. Well, as normal as fifty teenage girls becoming half-animal-half-human mutant heroines could be. Akane was wondering if there even_ were_ any situations at the Academy where the word 'normal' could be appropriately attributed, and was fast starting to doubt it.

Of course, her studies weren't the only things demanding of her time. On top of her classes, the evening Study Sessions, the many clubs that held their meetings in the afternoons, and her personal study time (basically any short break she could consider 'spare' time), she also helped out with keeping the dorm tidy, and, of course, cooked meals for her dorm-mates.

Lunch was the only meal the school accounted for; breakfast and dinner were both optional, but if the students opted 'for' food at either mealtime, they had to organise it themselves. This was where Akane learned that most of the students had, before she arrived, opted 'against' food at breakfast or dinner, because they either couldn't be bothered finding a food source or they didn't have the ability to prepare anything properly. Needless to say, in the 'food' field, Akane was a very popular dorm-member.

As a result, she ended up spending most of her time in the kitchenette, when she had the time to be in the dormitory at all. The other students quickly became accustomed to coming back to find her pottering around the small stove, or poking around in the refrigerator. Occasionally she had help from one of the other girls; Onchou was always happy to make biscuits to go with tea, and once, Kiseki helped her with a cake she was baking (which consisted of Kiseki sitting on the table behind Akane while she mixed the ingredients together, chattering about whatever she was thinking of at the time).

Unfortunately, she'd managed to dement the one thing Akane had the courage to ask her to do – put the cake in the oven to bake. Kiseki had somehow come to the conclusion that a cake would be ready faster if it was set on the highest heat setting, and, in her impatience to eat the final product, had turned the dial up to its maximum and skipped from the room to wait. When Akane had rushed in from her math books, feeling the heat waves radiating from the kitchenette from all the way over at the table in dorm seventeen, she'd pulled the oven door open and removed a sadly overdone sponge cake; it had hurt her knuckles when she rapped her fist against the top, and she'd had to throw the whole thing away and start again.

She'd since decided that letting Kiseki help was more of a bother than doing the whole lot by herself.

There was much cleaning that needed to be done; the kitchenette floor was in constant need of a sweep, and no matter how hard she attacked the corners near the refrigerator, the little piles of dust always managed to be there again the next day. Because of all the grazing of food that went on in the dormitory, the carpet was always ready to be vacuumed – which was a frustrating and often fruitless chore, considering the vacuum cleaner was small, flimsy, obviously cheaply bought, and didn't quite suck up the crumbs properly – and the bathroom was a constant mess. Akane spent a good deal of time simply tidying up the cosmetic and hair-care products scattered all over the benches, and sorting out which hairbrush, deodorant or mascara belonged to which girl.

The girls in dorm seventeen were not keen on doing the household chores. Akane completed them more out of habit and the desire to live in a neat and clean environment rather than a desire to actually do the chores themselves; often she found herself halfway through cleaning something without any memory of having decidedly committed to _clean _it.

The chore everyone seemed to detest the most, though, was the laundry. Although the official laundry day was Wednesday, the wicker washing basket was packed so full of dirty laundry by Tuesday that the lid wouldn't sit on it properly. Even so, no-one opted to take it down early and do the laundry a night earlier; it stayed full for the entire next day. People who couldn't fit their clothes into the basket on Wednesday simply left their things in a pile beside it, which Akane carried in her arms when she and Sachi took the basket down to the laundry that night.

There hadn't been anyone in the laundry that night; they'd had the entire place to themselves, and they'd been able to 'yoink' – a term of Sachi's – all the 'best' drying racks, which Sachi pointed out to Akane as they hung up the wet washing. But when Akane came back down the following morning with Kasai – Sachi was still in bed – to retrieve the washing before school began, the first thing she noticed was the presence of another person in the room.

He – it was a he; the distinctly masculine posture gave it away – was leaning against the doorway to the drying room with his arms folded across his chest, his expression calm and bored. A faint male voice could be heard calling to him from behind the drying room door; clearly, he was listening to it. His uniform looked like it had been thrown on and rustled until it was comfortable; his shirt was half un-tucked and his collar was open, with the tie absent. It was not the scruffy uniform that caused Akane to stare with wide brown eyes, however. It was the bright honey-blonde of his messy hair, and the stark azure-blue of his eyes. He glanced once in their direction – instinctively acknowledging their presence – and looked away again in the same moment.

"Yeah, I know," he said loudly to the door. "So what?"

The voice's response was muffled, but he seemed to understand it.

Akane could hardly believe her eyes. Of all the students she could have bumped into at the laundry, from the many hundreds of girls and boys spread across the year levels, she had to run into the boy from the cafeteria. Last time he'd seen her, she'd been a right mess – crying and trembling and acting like a little lost child in a department store (which, when she thought about it, she pretty much had been at the time) – and she'd utterly humiliated herself and made herself a burden to him.

It was an enormous relief when she realised he hadn't recognised her.

"Shirogane-sempai!"

Akane looked around, surprise, as Kasai drifted out from behind her, leaving the wicker basket on the trolley and gliding gracefully over to the boy, who looked about as surprise as Akane did. Recognition flashed in his eyes and a smile broke out upon his face.

"Kasai-chan," he greeted, pushing off from the door and wandering towards her, now ignoring the voice behind the door, which went on talking, ignorant of its solitude. She beamed up at him, her smile radiant and lovely, her icy eyes sparkling like rays of sun hitting the snow.

"How are you this morning?" he asked, looming over her, his hands jammed in his pockets.

"Fine, thank you," she replied, still smiling. "Better now that you're here, too."

His eyes twinkled with amusement. "Stop trying to flatter me."

She laughed – wind chimes pealing in the wind. Akane stood rooted to the spot, feeling extremely insignificant and intrusive of their personal moment. She clasped her hands behind her back and pointedly focused her eyes away from the pair; staring at them would only make everything awkward. Unfortunately, she ended up with her gaze fixed on the green door behind his head, and when he glanced up he assumed she was looking at him.

"Who's your friend?" he asked, nodding at her, his blonde locks shining in the bright, industrial lights. Kasai turned, her blue-black hair swaying delicately with the movement, and smiled brightly at Akane, having been reminded of her presence.

"Shirogane-sempai, this is Kikuchi Akane, from 9B. She's the new girl in our dorm; she's just started here," she said. "Akane-san, this is Shirogane Yuki, the tenth grade Student Representative, and Shirogane-sensei's son."

Akane's eyes almost bugged out of her head.

_This _was the headmaster's son? The boy she'd bumped into at the cafeteria on her first day? Her stomach flipped uncomfortably as humiliation crashed down on her once more. She'd made a complete idiot of herself in front of one of _the Student Representatives_?!

She dragged her stunned gaze away from the floor at his feet, up to his face, and was alarmed to find his expression intrigued. His eyebrows were knitted over his eyes, which were flashing with recollection. His mouth was tensed into a small frown as he studied her, almost like... like he might actually be starting to recognise her.

Akane panicked when his lips parted for him to speak. She whipped around and threw open the lid of the basket, throwing her arms inside to grab an armful of clothing. Except the basket was empty; ready to be filled with the freshly-dried laundry from the night before. She felt the atmosphere in the room tense as both elder students watched her, wondering whether to laugh or whether to take her seriously.

"Um... Akane-san?" Kasai broke the awkward silence that had stretched for several painful moments. "Aren't you forgetting that there's no washing to do this morning? We've got to get it from the drying room, remember?"

Akane, who had frozen the moment she'd realised her embarrassing mistake and was now stuck half inside the basket, straightened immediately, red-faced and rigid. She flailed, at a loss as to what to say or do.

Sensing her turmoil, Kasai forced a light laugh.

"She's quite enthusiastic about being here," she said, smiling up at Yuki to direct the attention to herself. "But she hasn't really learned how it all works yet."

He raised one eyebrow at Akane, who scuttled towards the drying room door, avoiding making eye contact with either of them, thankful for an excuse to leave the room. As she reached for the handle, however, it abruptly flew open, and she squealed before she could stop herself.

The boy who had been about to come through stared at her with almost translucent blue eyes, and she could feel the gazes of Kasai and Yuki on her as well. Her face flushed, if possible, an even deeper red.

The boy in front of her laughed, his face cracking into a broad grin. He flicked his golden-brown hair out of his eyes; like Yuki, his hairstyle was a little unruly, though it seemed he had styled his that way, whereas Yuki's simply fell like that – all over the place.

"You right there?" the boy asked jokingly, his eyes twinkling merrily. "Sorry to scare you."

"... Uh... I... Uh..." Akane faltered into a silence, stammering quite unbecomingly.

"You're not hurt, are you, Akane-san?" Kasai asked, her sweet voice concerned. Akane turned to force a reassuring smile in her direction. Sure, she was physically fine, but her dignity, as little as it was, anyway? Not so good.

"... No," she replied quietly, her eyes downcast. "I am fine."

When she turned back around, the guy behind her was sending sign language in Yuki's direction. He stopped immediately, flashing her a sheepish grin, and she knew instantly that whatever he was saying had been about her.

"... Excuse me," she murmured politely.

"Oh, right, sure," he said, jumping aside. "Sorry."

"... Thank you."

The door shut behind her, and she sighed heavily. It seemed no matter where she went, she was bound to make a fool of herself. She didn't want to know what Shirogane Yuki or his friend thought of her; it would no doubt be terrible. Akane circled around the dim drying room, unpegging all the items of clothing she recognised and bundling them in her arms. It was lovely and warm in the small room – not uncomfortably so – and it smelled of freshly tumble-dried linen inside; homey and cosy.

She was unpegging the last of the socks when her name was mentioned in the conversation behind the door, catching her attention, and she paused mid-reach to listen, in spite of her feelings towards eavesdropping.

"... _is _a little bit different," Kasai was saying quietly. "She rarely ever speaks."

"Is she always that... _nervous_?" Yuki's voice asked. There was a small sigh; presumably Kasai's.

"It seems so," she replied a moment later.

"She sure scares easy," the voice of the second boy commented. "Boy would she be fun at Halloween!"

"Izuru-kun!" Kasai's melodic voice scolded lightly, cutting into his open laughter.

"She's so shy," Yuki said, sounding astonished. "She's like that weird red-head from the ninth grade... What's her name?"

"Aizuka," Kasai prompted immediately. "Yeah... I guess she is, a bit. But things aren't quite as awkward with Kikuchi-san. At least she's nice. Aizuka's just... odd_._"

Behind the door, Akane's heart sank a little. So, despite her efforts to fit in, everyone still felt uncomfortable around her. She let out a shaky little sigh and fought back the tears welling in her eyes. Perhaps she would have been better off just trying to blend into the shadows rather than trying to make friends at the Academy, after all. Seeing as it didn't seem to make a difference either way...

She took a deep breath, pursed her small lips, swallowed her tears and made a few loud noises in the drying room to give them time to stop talking about her and start a new thread of conversation. Then she opened the door and plastered an innocently placid expression on her face.

"I've got Bio after lunch," Kasai was halfway through saying, when she appeared. "Have you got it this morning?"

"Mmm," Yuki replied absently, gazing at the floor, seemingly caught somewhere in his thoughts. Akane crossed the room to the basket and dumped the laundry inside, shutting the lid over and turning to Kasai expectantly.

"Ready?" Kasai asked, smiling sweetly, but not entirely able to rid her expression of the uncomfortable guilt one felt when in the presence of someone who was a recent topic of gossipy discussion. She shot a bright smile at the two boys.

"Well, we should be going now," she said, by way of announcing their departure. "I'll see you two at the lunch table today?"

"Sure," the shorter and darker blonde of the two, Izuru, replied with another easy, boyish grin. "See you 'round. 'Bye, girls."

"... Goodbye," Akane murmured, inclining her head respectfully to her elder student peers.

"'Bye, Shirogane-sempai," Kasai called, dragging him out of his stupor. His eyes lifted to them, where they were hesitating in the doorway. He nodded at Kasai; his eyes flicked to Akane.

"'Bye."

Who was she fooling, really? Akane thought as she walked back up the corridor to the elevators with Kasai, the quiet, rhythmic squeaking of the trolley wheels the only sound to break the silence between them. She wasn't in any way equal to the other girls. She was further behind in her studies than they were, she was lacking in personality compared to them, and – for Christ's sake – she didn't even have _any_ kind of magical powers! The more she thought about it, the more foolish she felt for ever thinking she could be like them. She couldn't even join in their conversations.

They headed back to the dorm in silence, Akane's pessimism stewing, her stomach churning uncomfortably as she glumly accepted that there would never, ever be a real place for her at Mew Academy.

* * *

**Naw-w-w, poor Akane. Feeling all alone and Emo... T-T **

**Anyways! Thanks for reading; now that the classes descriptions are officially O.V.E.R, I can start working on other parts of this story! (Like, finding little introductions for the hundred million OCs you guys submitted! XD)**

**Keep watching this space, people. Things shall soon be happening again (fingers crossed everything goes to plan, which it probably won't (does it ever???))**

**Before you leave, drop us a review, eh? That'd be nice :)**

**Until the next chapter! Peace-out XD**

**Cherrie-Sakura**

**xoxo**


	15. A1,P2,S4: A Day in the Life

**Hello, Fictioners!**

**So, for some odd reason, I was able to complete two chapters for two completely different stories today. Don't ask me how - it just happened that way XD**

**Now, this is a special chapter that takes a slightly different route than the usual storyline. There are a few people I have to thank specially here. Reading through the reviews page for this story (as one does every so often), I stumbled upon several loyal readers who have quite literally reviewed every single chapter of this story so far. **

**Now, considering this story has been all over the place from the get-go, I think that's a pretty fair effort.**

**So, in honour of these brilliant people, who I am extremely grateful to, I am going to sporadically center a chapter entirely around their OC (-wide, cheerful grin-).**

**And this is the first! So, to the author who's OC this is (I'm sure it should be quite obvious, as she seems to appear everywhere, in all sorts of author-insert stories :P), this is for you. I hope you're not having so rough a time as you've had in the past couple of weeks. Hope this makes you smile :) AND I'M SORRY IF YOUR CHARACTER IS OOC! DX**

**Enjoy this slice of out-of-the-ordinary-Mew-Academy-life update! XD**

* * *

Disclaimer: I do not own Tokyo Mew Mew (hands up anyone who thinks I should!) XD

Dedications...

Story for MewCuxie12. Chapter for Tears of a Thousand Pains (aka: Mika). 'Brush off the clouds and cheer up; put on a happy face!' - lyrics from 'Bye Bye Byrdie', the musical :)

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ACT ONE - PART TWO - SCENE FOUR

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**A Day in the Life of...**

She was in the Gym, during her morning class. The lights were bright above her, and the huge hall was strangely empty, except for her, of course. She had her back pressed against the wall. Her ears strained to pick up the tiniest of noises; she was searching for something – _anything –_that could reassure her that she wasn't really alone.

If there was one thing that she feared above all else, it was being left entirely alone.

She glanced around sharply, hoping to catch movement. For some odd reason, she knew there was something else in the room; she could _feel _it. There wasn't any other explanation for it; it was purely her instincts speaking to her.

"H-hello?" she called nervously. Whatever it was that she felt, it was definitely not good. Her stomach knotted and her heart sped up in her chest, though the room remained unchanged.

"Hello?" she called again, backing slowly to the centre of the expanse of polished wooden floorboards. She tilted her head back and squinted, trying to see if it – whatever it was – was above her.

A tiny shuffle – almost undeterminable, it was so soft – sounded from somewhere behind her.

She whipped around, heart hammering in her ears, dread settling in the pit of her stomach. Her throat became rapidly dry; she tried to swallow, without much success.

Above her, hovering far above the floor, was a pale-skinned figure with long, shining, seaweed green hair, and smouldering amber eyes. She recognised him at once – recognised him as being one of the Cyniclon students from the tenth grade. But on top of that... She recognised his as a friend. Familiarity washed over her, and she sighed with relief, the smile already spreading across her face.

"Asato-kun! You scared me!"

He didn't reply.

She blinked up at him, and he stared back at her, his face expressionless. Her smile faltered mid-stretch.

"Asato-kun? Are you okay?"

Without a word – without even acknowledging her – he raised one long, slender arm. Floating in his outstretched, chalk-white palm was what looked like a glowing yellow orb of jelly.

"Asato-kun... What _is that_?" she asked, pulse quickening once more. She thought she'd seen something like it before, but she couldn't place where. The insecure sense of something being wrong settled over her again; her skin prickled as she watched the ball of golden goo pulsing above his hand, like it was trying to burst out of its thin, skin-like membrane.

She took an involuntary step backwards as his molten amber eyes fixed an ice-cold gaze on her. It was a look she was used to seeing fixed on his face, but not one that had ever been directed at her. This was a look he saved for people he loathed – 'first year students and preppy cheerleaders', he'd once told her – not for his _friends_. Especially not her!

"A-Asa–" She stumbled over his name and faltered into a horrified silence.

"Fusion," he commanded in a stony, firm voice. Again, she registered that the voice was unmistakeably _his, _and yet, it couldn't be him, saying those words. He would never treat her like this – she was his best friend! Nausea swilled around her innards. Did he hate her now? What had she done to make him act this way towards her?

"I don't–!" she cried, but the rest of her sentence – 'understand_' _– was cut off by an explosion of golden light that instantly filled the room. Dazzled and blinded, she threw her arms over her face, shielding her eyes from the excruciating brightness; reflexive tears welled up under her eyelids, brimming beneath her eyelashes.

Something roared; she was aware of that at the back of her hectic mind. Her thoughts whirled around in her head like an unstoppable tornado; the more she tried to piece together what was going on, the more confused she became, and the more she panicked.

Then something hit her – hard. She was knocked off her feet as easily as if she'd been a bowling pin whacked by a baseball bat, and she slammed into something very stable and hard. With a shriek muffled by the pain roaring all over her body, she crumpled into a ball where she lay, and forced her eyes open, trying to focus her throbbing head.

Something monstrous rose up before her, like some sort of ridiculously huge, mutant wolf. At the back of her mind, a voice was shouting instinctively at her.

_Transform! Use your pendant, you idiot! _

But she couldn't. She couldn't bring herself to attack him... She would _never _hurt him! The idea was infallible – it simply wasn't an option. Despite her muscles screaming furiously at her in protest, she dragged herself to her feet...

To be knocked aside again.

She didn't get up this time. She simply didn't have the strength.

_If this is how I'm going to die, then whatever! I __**won't **__attack him! _

He was suddenly looming above her, gazing down at her with unsuppressed contempt. His eyes – flashing rich red-brown – were disgusted.

_Why, Asato-kun? I wish I knew why you were doing this... _

Her heart sank; her eyes focused on his thin white lips as they formed the words that would bring about her untimely demise...

_**Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!**_

Oh my God. It was so loud! _Too_ loud!

She frowned heavily and curled her head further into her pillow, to force the shrill screaming out of her head. It was so annoying, and so _persistent._

Willing the noise to go away, she yanked her covers over her head and pulled her pillow firmly down over her ears.

Argh! Would that stupid thing _ever _shut up?!

With a fierce, frustrated growl, she ripped back her pillow and propped herself up on one elbow, slamming her free fist down on the innocent little round-faced clock sitting on her bedside table. With a sharp snapping sound, the poor contraption crashed to the floor, cracking open. Springs and clock-hands sprayed everywhere.

Silence filled the room once more.

It had just been a dream... Just a dream...

Mika sighed exhaustedly and collapsed back onto her pillow, her arms flopping over the edges of her bed. She exhaled huffily, blowing her purple-streaked brown fringe out of her face. Another alarm clock to cross off the list of items she'd destroyed this week.

She'd gone through three already.

Well it wasn't her fault alarm clocks disagreed with her so much! If they could just learn to turn themselves off after a few minutes of consistent shrieking, she wouldn't have to let her short temper get the better of her, and – consequently – destroy them.

"Mika-cha-a-a-an!" a bright voice sang happily in an unwanted greeting. Something warm and distinctly human-like landed on the end of her bed, and suddenly someone was crawling up beside her. A thick mass of springy hair brushed against her cheeks, covering her face and effectively suffocating her.

She protested grumpily, pushing Kiseki's mane away from its valiant attempts to smother her.

"Ugh... Kiseki, do you _mind_?" she moaned irritably, shifting as the monkey girl accidentally kneeled on her stomach. "_Ow_, damnit!"

"Are you okay, Mika-chan?" Kiseki asked, her little voice filled with genuine concern. Rolling her eyes behind her closed eyelids, Mika kicked her legs to make the smaller girl move. As usual, Kiseki was utterly oblivious to the fact that it had been _her _causing the cheetah-girl discomfort, and probably thought she'd somehow managed to hurt _herself _instead.

"Urgh, would you get _off _me_, _Kiseki?!" Mika finally snapped, losing her patience. She reluctantly let her eyes open and aimed a glare in the cheerful girl's direction. Kiseki sat back on her haunches, resting her hands on her knees, beaming cheerfully. Mika rubbed her face groggily, yawning hugely.

"W-W-Why are you up so early?" she asked, struggling to speak through the yawn.

"Akane-chan made pancakes!" Kiseki announced excitedly. _Yes, _Mika thought sarcastically to herself, _that explains everything __**perfectly **__logically. _It was then that she noticed the smudges of golden-brown syrup around the other girl's grinning lips. She pulled a face of distaste.

"You need to wash your face, Kiseki-chan."

"Do I have maple syrup around my mouth?" the monkey girl asked, sticking her tongue out as far as it would go and licking around her cheeks. Mika wrinkled her nose and pushed back her leopard print duvet, forcing Kiseki to move off her feet.

"Yeah. You do," she said, climbing out of bed and stretching her arms over her head. Kiseki watched her, giggling.

"What?" Mika demanded crossly, propping her hands on her hips impatiently.

"You might want to brush your hair, Murakami-san," Umeko's voice called from the direction of the sofas. Mika glanced at her; she was sitting with her legs crossed, balancing a plate of pancakes on her knees. Mika glowered at the pair of them – Kiseki was still giggling like an insufferably annoying kindergarten child – and stomped over to her portion of the large wardrobe, grabbing her uniform and storming into the bathroom.

Umeko was right: Her hair was a mess. It was sticking up all over the place, and it was fuzzy, like a soft bird's nest. Sighing heavily, Mika yanked a brush through it, untangling the painful knots that always threaded themselves when she slept, and pulled on her uniform, glaring at it hatefully in the mirror with flecked golden-brown eyes.

_So unflattering... No wonder Asato-kun doesn't like me... I look __**ugly **__in this stupid uniform!_

She hesitated for a moment, her mind returning to the dream she'd had last night. It had been horribly realistic; unlike any dream she'd had for ages. The last nightmare she'd had about her best friend had involved turning up to lunch in the cafeteria in nothing but her underwear. And she thought that'd been bad enough.

She thanked her lucky stars that hadn't ever happened to her. But, knowing her, she couldn't count herself out just yet. Things like that always seemed to happen to her... Especially when trouble-makers like Sachi were around, just waiting for something bad to happen to her...

Mika gazed at her reflection for a moment, contemplating herself. Asato would never treat her like that, would he? She pulled herself out of her thoughts and caught sight of her obscure eyes, filled with wavering uncertainty.

_Stop it, Mika! You're being stupid! Of __**course **__he'd never treat you like that; how can you doubt him so easily?!_

Shaking her head slightly, she left the bathroom, dumping her pyjamas on her messed-up bed and glancing around the dorm for a moment.

Everyone was where they would normally be: black and white haired Rin was curled up on the sofa with a novel; Umeko was sitting beside her, eating; Naomi was over at the table with Kasai, engrossed in _PopTeen's _most recent release; ever grim-faced Maiya was sitting in the corner, bent over a textbook of some sort (did that girl ever do _anything_ besides studying?) her elbow-length ash black hair hiding her face from view; shy, scrawny Yoko was hiding in the safety of her bunk in the corner, her legs drawn up under her chin and secured by her painfully skinny arms, her blood-red hair covering most of her face. Her single aquamarine eye was fixed unmovingly on a spot in the wood of the bunk frame. The merry voices of Kiseki and Onchou floated in from the kitchenette, mingled with the voices of the girls from next door.

Yep, just your average morning in dorm eighteen.

"Hey, Mika-chan," Sazuki greeted with a pleasant smile when she walked into the kitchenette to check out the party gathered around the table.

"Hi," Mika replied, crossing her arms to hide her discomfort. Her interpersonal skills were seriously lacking in comparison to those of some of her more social friends. The others didn't seem bothered by her lack of chatter; if it _did _bother them, they certainly didn't say anything.

Besides, they couldn't, really. Not with Miss Introverted herself standing by the tiny fridge.

Mika glanced over at the newcomer, her eyes raking over her clasped hands, her soft caramel hair, the slight inward curl of her body, like she was trying to hide herself. Her brown eyes were fixed on the group around the table; she was watching them anxiously, as though she were waiting for something... A grading, perhaps?

Kikuchi Akane's eyes darted up to Mika's face, then flitted away quickly. Her cheeks reddened immediately; she was embarrassed to have been seen _looking _at someone else. Mika refrained from rolling her eyes.

"Want some pancakes, Mika?" Umeko asked, walking in with her empty plate. She dumped it in the sink and wiped the corners of her mouth, her mysterious purple-blue eyes on Mika's face. Mika shrugged casually.

"Whatever. No, not really. I'm not that hungry, actually."

Umeko shrugged, too. "Alright then. Thanks for breakfast, Kikuchi-san."

Akane glanced up in surprise and smiled a small, very obviously forced smile, inclining her head graciously in acknowledgement.

"How long 'til first class?" Mika asked, resting against the frame of the door as she watched the gabble of girls fighting over the bottle of maple syrup. Their laughter and chatter was a merry, wholesome sound. Umeko ran her fingers through her honey blonde hair, twisting it into its usual low bun at the back of her head.

"Ten minutes, maybe?"

Mika didn't reply. If she'd had more time, she might have tried to go and find Asato before class started. He was always up early. The thought of not seeing him until lunch time – and even then, only being able to watch him from the other side of the cafeteria while he mingled with the elite social class of the tenth grade – depressed her considerably.

"You want to go?"

Umeko was staring at her, her expression knowing. Mika shrugged.

"Whatever."

They grabbed their bags and walked out into the hallway, still cool with the untainted morning air.

"So," Umeko said, a little too loudly, her voice echoing off the walls with their footsteps. Mika raised one eyebrow, waiting.

Umeko suddenly smirked at her.

"Decided when you're gonna tell Asato yet?" she asked, glancing at her out of the corner of her eye. Mika's cheeks immediately flushed. She feigned innocence, knowing full well what her friend was referring to.

"Tell him what?"

"That you're crushing on him," Umeko replied. "Duh."

"I'm not crushing on him!" Mika protested. She shot a glare at the bumblebee Mew, cursing the heat radiating from her face. Umeko rolled her eyes.

"Right. I forgot," she sighed. "You're still in denial."

"I am _not_!" Mika snapped. She ground her teeth together, clenching her fists in her blazer pockets. "There's nothing to be in denial _about_."

"Sure there's not." Umeko's voice was thick with sarcasm. Mika fought the rage that was building inside her. It was so stupid, getting so worked up over something as little as this, but people really didn't understand how important her friendship with him was. It was vital – precious. He was the sole person she could talk to about _anything _at all, the one person she could really open up to. The thought of jeopardising that connection, even in the most trivial of ways, was abhorrent. She would never ever risk their friendship.

No matter how strongly she felt about him.

X

"Murakami!" Pai-sensei's cold, dull voice rang out over the polite chatter of the girls of 9B. Mika raised her head obediently from where it was rested on her arms, looking at him from her desk.

"Homework?" Pai prompted, his expression expectant. He held up one hand, waiting.

Mika's heart sank.

_Oops... _

"Um..." she trailed off, dread settling in the pit of her stomach. "I forgot it."

He raised one perfect, steel-grey eyebrow. His unforgiving eyes were fixed on her face. He said nothing.

"I did it," Mika amended quickly. "I mean, I didn't forget about it, or anything. Can I bring it to you at lunchtime?"

She blushed under his intense stare.

"O-or I could just hand it in next lesson...?" she stuttered into a shameful silence. Pai sighed heavily, marking something next to her name on his class role.

"Report to detention this afternoon," he said, stony-faced. "Bring your homework to the staff room at the start of lunch."

He stalked away to find his next victim.

Mika sighed dejectedly and dropped her head back onto her desk.

"You forget your homework again, huh, Murakami-san?" a girly voice asked from the desk beside her. Mika rolled her head to one side so she could examine her addressee. It was Mori, Hanako. Her platinum blonde ponytail swayed against her back. She blinked her bright blue eyes.

Mika rolled her head back to the middle of the desk, ignoring the comment. What was she, stupid? Talk about stating the obvious. She chose to assume the question rhetorical.

"You get any of the notes?" Umeko's smooth voice appeared above her, as the bell finished ringing, a good half hour or so later. Around them, chairs were scraping and books were being slammed shut.

Mika grunted.

"Yeah. Didn't think so," Umeko replied. Mika could hear the smirk in her voice. "You can borrow mine in Study tonight... Or are you going to be late again?"

Mika grunted again.

"Thought so. You really should stop trying to land yourself in detention," Umeko said lightly, packing up the cheetah-girl's things. "Come on, let's go already. We'll be late for Bio, and I'd rather _not _join you in detention."

Mika grumbled and dragged herself out of her chair, traipsing along behind her honey-haired friend.

X

School was not one of Mika's strong points. Her parents often described her as being 'smart' but not being 'intelligent'. Her dad said she had brains, but was no academic scholar. It wasn't that Mika really disliked school, it was just... boring. There was nothing exciting about sitting at a table all morning trying to swallow pages and pages of boring history that no-one cared about.

She didn't fail, but she didn't excel, either. She was just your average student, really.

But despite averaging a B report card, Mika still struggled to make it through her classes without getting distracted, or bored, or letting her mind wander.

And so it was this morning.

She took no notes in History – she was in too foul a mood to even consider paying attention, after being handed her most recent detention on a silver platter – and found herself drifting off in Bio/Genetics. Her lab partner, silver haired Ayame, slouched beside her, her hand swirling across a page in her A4 sketchbook. She glanced up every now and then with piercing grey eyes, pursing her lips whenever she noticed Mika's lack of attention to the class.

"What's your deal?" Ayame hissed finally, the sketch of the little kitten complete. Mika started and turned to her, surprised.

"Excuse me?"

"You. What's your problem today?" Ayame demanded, flicking her head so the two jet black bangs were tossed out of her face. Mika frowned.

"Nothing."

"Yeah, right," Ayame scoffed coldly.

"So?"

"Well, how the heck are we supposed to pass if you haven't got the notes?" Ayame demanded, returning to refining her very realistic kitten. It looked like it could wriggle its tail and pounce out of the page at any moment.

Mika watched her grey lead pencil defining the edges of the kitten's body, and glanced to her partner's unopened books. Annoyance bubbled up inside her.

"You know, _you _could try taking the notes today," she pointed out sharply. Ayame shot her a warning glower.

"I'm drawing today. It's my turn next lesson, _remember_?"

"Forget the stupid alternations!" Mika snapped. Ayame glared at her icily.

"Did you swallow a lemon this morning?" she demanded, her expression a disdainful sneer. "You're bitterer than usual. And you're usually bad enough, anyway."

It was no secret the two didn't exactly get along like a house on fire.

"Would you just shut up and do your work?" Mika snapped angrily.

"Is there a problem, ladies?" Shirogane-sensei's amused voice cut through their argument. They glared at each other from either end of the bench, the tension so thick between them their classmates could practically envisage the heated sparks of electricity flying between their furious eyes. Everyone watched with bated breath.

"No." Ayame was the first to break the ice, turning lazily to their teacher, who had paused mid-lecture with his hand stretched up to the black board. He glanced from Ayame to Mika with one eyebrow raised, daring them to continue their bickering.

"Murakami?" he demanded, his blue eyes warning. Mika shot one final glower at her lab partner and turned back to face the front.

"No, sir," she all but spat, wishing she had something hard and sharp in her hand to throw at Ayame's head.

"Good." His tone was still warning. They both caught the unspoken threat that followed. _Keep it that way._

"Now, as I was saying," Shirogane continued, turning back to his notes. "When a Mew cell undergoes the process of Mitosis..."

"You're not having the best of days today, are you, Mika?" Umeko asked as they wandered along the corridor after class. Mika sighed and readjusted the strap of her rucksack.

"Boy is that an understatement."

"What happened with Miwako, anyway?" Umeko asked, more for the sake of asking than out of general curiosity.

"She got crappy because I wasn't writing the notes," Mika replied, shrugging. She glared at the floor. _Stupid, lazy cow with her stupid, cute kitten pictures!_

"... borrow mine?" Umeko was asking. Mika started, dragging herself out of her resentful reverie.

"Sorry, what?"

"I said; do you want to borrow mine?" Umeko repeated, shooting her a strange look. "Weren't you listening, Mika?"

"I'm kind of out of it today." Mika shrugged apologetically. They turned the corner and followed the flow of students onto the escalators, squishing up to fit across the narrow belt. Mika grumbled as an elder boy elbowed her in the back, and shot a glare at him over her shoulder. His friend shoved him playfully and he accidentally knocked her again.

"Ugh, do you _mind_?!" she shrieked, her cheeks flushed, her hair messy. The boy glanced at her in alarm.

"Hey, sorry! I didn't _mean_ to hit you."

"Whatever," she spat, turning back around. Umeko glanced at her out of the corner of her eye, like she was a delicate time-bomb that could explode at any given moment.

"There they are," she announced as they stepped off the escalator and made their way towards the enormous bowl of tables and chairs below them. The usual group of girls from dorms seventeen and eighteen were clustered around several tables towards the middle of the bowl. Mika spotted Sachi's blueberry blue pigtails almost immediately.

As she followed Umeko down the stairs and across the shining tiled floor, Mika's speckled gold-brown eyes swept anxiously around the sea of students, searching for Asato. His normal table by the fountain – where the popular students from across the classes sat – was teeming with people, but he was absent. Her hope deflated as they approached their friends. Would she even _see _him at all today? They were spending less and less time together, and it was starting to worry her...

"Hey, guys," Sazuki greeted with a welcoming smile, as Umeko took her seat at the empty table beside theirs. As Mika dumped her bag on the floor, she gazed wordlessly at her friends. The new girl, Akane, glanced up from beneath her eyelashes, then looked back down at her hands, clasped neatly in her lap.

Mika fought the urge to slap some confidence into her.

_Seriously. What the heck is her problem?!_

"What do you want today?" Umeko asked quietly, reaching into her bag for her purse. Mika shrugged.

"Ramen?"

"Yeah, that'll do," Umeko agreed, getting up from her seat. "I'll be right back. Mind the table."

Mika rested her elbows on the table and fixed her eyes on the escalators, straining them for any sign of him. She didn't know why, but she was antsy today. She was fidgety and irritable, and she wanted to talk to him. She had no idea what about, but she just wanted to hear his voice.

"What's up, Mika-chan?" Kiseki asked, rolling over on her rainbow skates and flopping down in the seat opposite her. Mika glanced at her warily.

"Nothing, Kiseki."

"You look sad," Kiseki argued. Her emerald eyes flashed with concern. A rare surge of affection for the little monkey Mew washed over Mika, and she smiled reassuringly.

"I'm not, really. It's okay."

"Yeah," Sachi interrupted, and Mika immediately froze, tensing as she awaited what she knew was coming. "Mika-chan's not _sad, _she's _lonely_."

"Lonely?" Kiseki didn't understand. She cocked her head to one side, her strawberry blonde curls tumbling over one shoulder. "But she's sitting here with all of us..."

"She misses her sweet Asato-ku-u-un, don't you, Mika?" Sachi teased, grinning hugely. "She's so in love with him that she can't even be around her friends without getting lovesick." She puckered her plump, glossy lips and batted her blackened eyelashes at the cheetah Mew.

The little bubble of rage Mika had been fighting to compress all morning finally popped.

She slammed her hands down on the table and stood up so quickly her chair was knocked over. Sachi and Kiseki's face filled with alarm as she reached down and yanked her rucksack over her shoulder, her cheeks burning – a mixture of rage, humiliation and defiance.

"For once in your life would you just _leave it alone_, Nakamura!" Mika shouted, hot tears welling up in her eyes. Darn it! She _never _cried! Never! Especially not in front of her classmates. She stomped her foot childishly and stormed from the cafeteria, ignoring everyone's eyes on her as her little scene came to an end.

"Mika!" a voice called over the loud gabble of conversation, but she refused to acknowledge it, pushing through the endless crowd to get to the 'up' escalator, her head bowed so no-one would see she was upset.

"You pushed it too far this time, Sachi," Sazuki said, frowning seriously at her friend. Sachi's expression remained frozen in shock.

"Um... What's going on?" Umeko asked, arriving with their food.

"Mika..." Sazuki trailed off, gesturing lightly towards the escalator. Umeko dumped the tray on the table and dropped into her seat with a sigh, looking up when she sensed everyone's incredulous gazes on her.

"What?"

"Aren't you going to chase her?" Kiseki asked, astonished. A wry smile twisted Umeko's face, and she reached for her chopsticks, unsnapping them and arranging them comfortably in her grasp.

"No."

"But–"

"Mika likes to sort out her own problems."

The others fell silent, exchanging _looks _and reluctantly returning to their lunches. It was clear that none of them were particularly happy with the way the situation was being handled, but Umeko was the closest to the withdrawn girl of all of them, and they trusted her judgement over their own.

X

Soft music filled the silence of dorm eighteen.

Her fingers strummed the strings of the acoustic guitar, which rested on her crossed legs in her lap. She sat, curled up, on her bottom bunk, staring at the floor while her fingers improvised. Normally when she played her guitar, she'd sing as well, but she didn't feel much like singing today. She was too annoyed.

Music was Mika's solace. It was her escape when she was mad, sad or glad. She could express any of her emotions through her guitar; it was her most prized possession. She kept it zipped up in its case under her bunk at all times, and she always knew exactly where she'd put it, and when. It was old and a little battered in places, but it had character, and she loved it.

There was a soft knock at the door.

She ignored it, continuing to strum absently.

Whoever was at the door knocked again, louder this time.

"Go away!" she called irritably, frustrated that she'd been forced to stop playing. _Obviously it's not anyone from the dorm, otherwise they'd just walk in, _she thought. The knocking didn't repeat itself, but she sensed the person was still there. She quietly lifted her guitar out of her lap and rested it on her still unmade bed – she was messy; so what? – climbing off the bunk and bending for one of her shoes.

She crept towards the door, gripping the shoe tightly in her hand, and took a deep breath, reaching for the handle...

"What on earth are you doing?"

Mika jumped violently, whipped around, and launched her weapon at her attacker.

"Ow, Mika! What was that for?!"

She gasped in horror as her tall, elfin-like friend stooped to pick up her shoe, his long, thin, seaweed green ponytail falling over his shoulder.

"Asato-kun!" she cried in surprise, followed by the first thing that popped into her mind. "You're not allowed in here!"

He paused and glanced up at her incredulously, arching one slender eyebrow.

"I can go, if you'd like."

"No!" she gasped, horrified. "I mean, you're not _supposed_ to be in here, but I'm glad you are. I... You startled me! Wh-what–?"

"Mika. Stop talking. _Please_," he said, his voice silky. His amber eyes twinkled with amusement. She blushed, but beamed at him nonetheless.

"You could have let me in," Asato commented, twisting his perfect posture to frown at the door. "I _did _knock... Twice."

"I-I know. Sorry... I thought you were someone else," she admitted, crossing over to him and taking the shoe from his hand.

"Are you expecting company?" Asato asked, suddenly suspicious. Her blush intensified.

"No – of course not! I just didn't think it was you at the door," she explained. _How can you even think I'd do something like that? Are you really that blind to how I feel about you?_

"Who did you think it was, then?" he asked, frowning in confusion. His eyes were almost luminous, set in his chalk-white, angular face. A few strands of deep green strayed across his forehead; she fought the urge to tuck them behind his pointed ear.

"I don't know!" she cried, exasperated. "I wasn't going to let _anyone _in."

"Oh." He smiled down at her, his thin lips curling up at the edges, and her heart skipped a beat. His expression changed to one of mild amusement. "Why did you throw your shoe at me?"

"I..." she trailed off, embarrassed by her wild imagination. "I thought you were going to attack me."

"Why on earth would you think that?" he demanded, astonished.

"No – not _you _personally," Mika corrected quickly. "I mean, I thought you were an attacker."

There was a long silence.

"You thought someone had come to attack you – specifically you – in your dorm, at school?"

"It was dumb, I know," Mika mumbled, blushing furiously and wishing he'd stop looking at her like she'd just announced she believed she was born on Mars.

He said nothing else, recognising her chagrin. The whole thing still amused him, though. He put the shoe down beside her bunk and his eyes fell on her guitar.

"You're upset," he said. It wasn't a question. He just knew. Mika's heart sank a little. She'd hoped they might be able to avoid having this conversation, because she wasn't going to be able to tell him why she was upset, and that would offend him. And offending him would only upset her even more. But she could see no way around it.

"Yeah, a little," she admitted.

"Why?" he asked, turning to look at her with curious amber eyes. He watched her face, waiting for her response, oblivious to the fact that his gaze made her squirm with nerves.

"Uh... I kind of just exploded," Mika said eventually, not looking at him. How could she, when the whole issue revolved around _him_? She was petrified that if she looked at him, he'd read her expression and realise what was going on.

She didn't know what she'd do if he found out. He'd probably stop talking to her. Everybody knew the pair was leagues apart in the social hierarchy. He was the aristocrat at the top of the food chain. She was the almost dead blade of grass that not even the slums considered eating. It hadn't been a problem for their friendship before, but if he knew she considered him like _that_...

Well, she knew he wouldn't be able to tolerate it. Things would become weird. She didn't know what she would do if things got weird between them.

"What happened?" Asato asked. He teleported over to the sofa and sank down on a cushion, patient, as always.

"Uh..." Mika flailed, trying to find something appropriate to say without giving the game away.

"You can tell me," he promised, which only made her feel worse. She already knew she could tell him anything she wanted and have full trust and confidence in him. But it was so much more difficult in this particular situation...

"Well," she began tentatively. "The girls have been... sort of... teasing me recently... about... something... that is very important to me."

Asato frowned a little.

"Why?" he asked. "What have they been teasing you about?"

"Oh. Um... Well..."

"It's a boy, isn't it?" Asato said suddenly, sharper than usual. She glanced up at him. He was watching her intently, his expression a little stony.

"Sort of," she admitted, shuffling from one foot to the other. God, this was embarrassing!

"Is it anything I can help with?" he asked. She flicked her gaze over to where he was sitting and away again. Oh, how she wished he could!

"Mika?"

She looked over again, chewing her lip, her expression one of torn guilt. He sensed her hesitation and his eyes tightened. He looked down.

"It's alright. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"It's not that!" Mika burst out, caving when she caught his terse expression, her cheeks flaming red. "It's just so hard to talk about... with you..."

"If you're worried I won't let you go out with him, then you needn't be," Asato reassured her quickly, looking over at her earnestly. Mika's heart clenched. That was so far from what she wanted him to say – the complete opposite, in fact!

"I'm not so selfish that I can't share you, Mika."

Argh! She didn't _want _to be shared! She wanted to be _his, _and his only!

He smiled a wry little smirk at her expression.

"What kind of friend doesn't let his best friend have a boyfriend?" he continued playfully. "Just go ahead, Mika."

Oh god, it was chewing her up inside! If she wasn't careful, she'd explode and finally confess it all. It had to be better than enduring this painful oblivion of his. She was like a balloon, slowly overfilling with air so that she was in danger of bursting out of her skin.

No. No, she couldn't do that. _Refrain, Mika. Calm down._

"Relax, Mika," Asato said smoothly, smiling warmly at her. Mika forced a strangled smile in return. He rose from the sofa and drifted gracefully towards her, his amber eyes fixed on her face. He stopped in front of her, watching her for a moment. Then his delicate lips curled up in a small smile.

"If I'd known that was what you were freaking out about, I'd have saved you all the stress a whole lot earlier," he said, raising a long-fingered hand to ruffle her hair fondly. Her stomach fluttered. Maybe she _should _just tell him... Surely he must feel something for her, too... He didn't look at other girls the way he was looking at her now, she was sure of it.

She took a slow, deep breath, forced her gaze up to meet his, and opened her mouth–

The bell rang sharply. Her eyes almost bugged out of her head as he dropped his hand from where it was resting on her shoulder and stepped back. Surely, this couldn't be happening to her!

"I have to go," Asato muttered. "I have a History class now. And if your friends walk in and see me here, I'm sure that would go down magnificently."

He smiled a little at her, almost sadly, as though he, too, recognised how precious their time together was these days.

For Mika, it was like her heart was breaking.

_Seriously. The one time I decide to actually say something to him, and Fate gets in the way!_

And darn it, the tears were coming again. She was like a stupid waterworks today!

Asato caught her expression, and his face fell.

"Aww, don't be like that, Mika," he said unhappily, hovering uncertainly, unsure of how to handle girly, upset Mika. She rarely ever cried. In fact, the only time he could remember her crying was years ago, when her cat had died. She was about nine at the time.

"We'll see each other again soon," he promised her. "I'll study with you tomorrow, if you'd like. Do you still need help with Bio/Genetics?"

She swallowed the painful lump in her throat and nodded, since she couldn't really speak. She was afraid her voice might break. He must've thought she was a freak, being so uncharacteristically emotional around him. _He's probably considering whether to hospitalise me or not, _she thought glumly.

"Meet me in the library tomorrow after school," Asato said, smiling at her. She forced a bright smile in return.

"Sure."

"I'll see you then," he said, his eyes snapping to the door. "Your friends are coming."

He smiled once more at her, shut his eyes, and disappeared on the spot. Mika immediately felt just a little more depressed, like a little bit of the warmth was sucked from the room when he left. Being around Asato just made her so unexplainably happy.

Not three seconds later, the door opened, and an assortment of girls from dorms seventeen and eighteen poured in, chattering like a bunch of parrots.

"There you are!" Kiseki cried, a delighted smiled breaking across her impish face.

"Are you feeling better, Mika-chan?" Sazuki asked, playing the ever-thoughtful friend.

"Yeah," Mika replied. Umeko shot her a small smile of understanding and crossed to the wardrobe to get her books. Sachi was one of the last through the door, and she froze when she caught sight of the cheetah Mew, her expression uncomfortable.

Mika's face hardened. She turned to pack away her guitar, still annoyed with the blue haired girl.

"Mika-san..." Sachi trailed off nervously. The others dispersed, leaving the pair alone. Mika obediently turned to face the other, her lips sealed tightly shut, her eyes a little frosty.

"I'm really, really sorry," Sachi breathed, her cheeks pink. "I honestly didn't mean to push you over the edge... I was just poking fun, I swear. I didn't know you were having such a bad day. Please will you forgive me?"

Mika glanced at her, a little of her frosted heart melting a fraction. Sachi shifted her weight uncomfortably, knotting her fingers together nervously, looking like a child about to be spanked for doing the wrong thing, and anticipating the sting on their backside.

"Whatever," Mika eventually sighed, turning away.

"Mika," Sachi said quickly. She turned back around again. Sachi sucked in her bottom lip.

"I'll lay off from now on... Y'know, about... Asato, and everything."

Mika nodded once, curtly, and Sachi breathed a sigh of relief. Clearly she wanted to get that off her chest. Her pixie-ish face broke out into a small, tentative smile, and she quickly took her leave.

"You forgave her," Umeko noted, as Mika unlocked the locker beside hers.

"No use in staying mad," Mika grunted. "She just gets annoying after a while."

"You should have seen his face," Umeko said conversationally, her tone deliberately light and casual. Mika glanced at her, but said nothing.

"In the cafeteria today," Umeko continued, pulling out her English textbooks. "When he saw you upset like that. You would have been very pleased."

Mika still didn't say anything, but Umeko knew better than to push it.

"He called out to you, you know," she said, her lavender gaze settling on the smaller, pink-cheeked girl, who was now pointedly rearranging the books in her locker. Mika's heart kicked a little at the memory of the shout that had followed her up the escalator. She hadn't realised it was him. The image in her mind now was a fantasy she rarely let herself imagine – of concern etching his features, unmasked emotion flashing in his beautiful eyes as he chased her determinedly through a surging crowd of people...

"I really don't know why you don't just tell him," Umeko continued with a sort of half-wistful, half-frustrated little sigh, dragging her back to reality. "You never know. You might be luckier than you think."

When Mika risked another glance at her friend, a very small smile stretched across her lips. Then she shouldered her bag and headed for the door, leaving the cheetah Mew standing by her locker, midway through taking out her pencil case. She watched Umeko's back disappear into the corridor, and mulled over what her friend had told her.

Maybe she really didn't have any reason to be afraid to tell him how she felt. Maybe she shouldn't be so worried about damaging their friendship... especially if he _did _– on the rare, highly unlikely off-chance – return her feelings. Maybe she was blowing the whole thing way out of context, burdening herself with unnecessary stress, when it could turn out to be the best decision she would ever make.

It was a far-cry, but just maybe...

"Are you coming, Mika-chan?" Kiseki called, pausing at the door.

"Yeah," she replied, shutting her locker and dragging the wardrobe door across. "I'm coming. You go ahead."

Kiseki grinned at her and zoomed eagerly into the hall.

Mika strolled lazily along the corridor, letting herself get swept up with the tide of students flowing towards the elevators. She gazed thoughtfully out the big, glassy windows at the bright blue sky, allowing herself to be swallowed up in her thoughts.

Asato deserved to know. He had a right, as her best friend and the most important person in her life, to know how she felt about him. And if he didn't feel the same way, well, she trusted him enough to believe that he would respect her feelings and not throw away their friendship because of it. She was just going to have to swallow her fears and bite the bullet.

And she _would_ tell him. Someday, she would be strong enough to admit everything she kept bottled up inside. Things would change then, but that could be okay.

Until then, she was happy being her weird, insecure self about the whole thing.

But that was fine. Because someday, she would tell him. And she'd be able to handle whatever the outcomes were when that day came.

* * *

**So, today's 'A Day in the Life of...' was: (-drumroll-) ... Murakami Mika! XD**

**Yes, yes, thankyou, dear Mika-chan, for being one of few dedicated readers who has reviewed every single chapter of Mew Academy to date.**

**Your reviews are what keeps me going; what fuels my determination to update :D**

**I hope everyone enjoyed the update :3**

**Reviews are love, and love is inspirational. So drop us a review, ne?**

**Until the next update,**

**Cherrie xx**


	16. A1,P2,S5: Beyond the Gates

**Yahoo, Fictioners!**

**By the way, that's not 'yahoo' in the sense that we Western kids say it, it's 'yah-hoh', how Konata (Lucky Star) says it. So CUTE! XD**

**So, here we are again, with another update :)**

**We're back to the main plot again, after Mika's little debut back there, so we're back with Akane. Though, I received a review for the last chapter from a girl who had read the story so far and was leaving her first review. Now - several of you have pointed this out to me before, but this time it just seemed to strike home (so, no offense to authors like sak, who have been saying this from the start :P) - she mentioned that not a whole lot happened for the amount of description there is. So, this chapter, I decided to try to add more 'action' XD**

**As a result, this chapter grew into a monster, as you can see. Please blame minniemouselover for the monstrosity of chapter 16. More on this in the post-A/N.**

**For now, just enjoy the chapter :3**

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**Disclaimer: Blah blah TMM not mine blah blah. (eye-roll)**

**Dedications...**

**Story for MewCuxie12. Chapter for minniemouselover. Why? I'm not sure, either XD**

**

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ACT ONE - PART TWO - SCENE FIVE

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When Akane opened the door to the refrigerator on her first Friday morning, her eyes widened. Every day she'd been faced with the challenge of preparing a hearty meal for all of the girls in the two dormitories, with a limited supply of ingredients, but this morning, the racks were painfully bare. All that remained, sitting innocently on the little shelves on the inside of the door, was an almost-empty tub of margarine, several sachets of honey someone must have brought back from a hotel somewhere, and one very sad, shrivelled carrot.

Luckily, Akane was saved by the half-loaf of bread in the barrel in the corner, so she served up stacks of toast with honey for the girls. Not her most extravagant, lavish meal so far, but it sufficed for the morning.

However, the coming weekend presented a problem. What in the world were they going to eat?

"Oh, don't worry about it," Sachi said, when she bravely voiced this concern. "Every Friday afternoon, Yume collects money from all the students and a group of us goes grocery shopping. It works out fairly that way. Everyone eats, everyone pays."

Akane's reaction to this explanation was mixed. Relieved, because the prospect of them all starving was no longer a threat. Worried, because she didn't know how much money she had to contribute to the weekly shopping.

After their last afternoon class, Sachi, Sazuki, Kiseki and Akane returned to dorm seventeen, and our shy heroine was surprised to find it full of girls. For the first time since the nightly curfew, it seemed all the dorm-members were present at one time. And, of course, there were several extras from next door, which meant the room was crawling with teenage girls.

Curled up on the sofas were Kasai, Naomi and Rin; Rin reading, as always, Kasai and Naomi painting each others' nails vibrant shades of blue and pink. Sitting at the table were Onchou, Emiko, the chocolate-skinned senior, Madar, who very rarely made an appearance from her busy senior life, and Momoka, the black-haired Cyniclon. Emiko and Madar had their noses buried in their school books. Onchou was in the midst of preparing a china cup of steaming tea. Momoka seemed to be doing little else besides sitting cross-legged on the table-top, right in the middle. Her curious golden eyes fixed on Akane for a moment, luminous as always, then flicked away.

It always unsettled her stomach, the way the alien scrutinised her like that. Every time those gold eyes fell upon her, she felt like a puzzle. Momoka's expression was similar every time; curious, then mystified.

Akane silently counted heads as she emptied the contents of her bag into her locker. Kasai, Momoka, Emiko, Sachi, Sazuki, Madar and herself. That was only seven. One was missing.

"Is everyone here?" Yume's silky voice said suddenly. Akane turned to find her removing her bag from her shoulder as she stood by the wardrobe, her shining lavender hair cascading down her back. And there was the missing one. Now they were all present.

"Dorm seventeen is," Onchou replied sweetly, sipping her tea. She smiled at Akane when she glanced over.

"Someone round up the girls from dorm eighteen," Yume commanded. When no-one volunteered, she whirled elegantly on her heel, her hair flowing around her waist.

"We don't have all day! Rin, go."

"Me? But–"

"_You're _their senior," Yume scowled. "Act like it."

Grumbling, Rin dragged herself up from the sofa and wandered next door, her eyes never leaving the page. Akane quietly shut her locker door and neatly slid her now-empty bag into its place in the wardrobe. Then she pulled the door across and joined the girls at the table, sinking down beside Emiko, who glanced up and grinned once before returning to her homework.

Several moments later, Rin returned – still reading – with two girls following her. The first Akane immediately recognised by her flaming red hair and ridiculously tiny figure. Aizuka's single see-able aquamarine eye flickered nervously around the room before settling on the floor as she sank down onto the bunk closest to the kitchenette door. The second was a rather tall girl with long black hair that tumbled to her elbows in shining waves, streaked snow-white and kept back from her face by a blood-red headband. Her eyes – golden-amber in colour – were quite expressionless. She stopped in the doorway and leaned against it, folding her arms across her chest and pointedly ignoring everyone.

"Where are the other two?" Yume demanded. Rin shrugged and dropped back onto the sofa. Akane blinked at her. She really was just like a belligerent teenager deliberately irritating their parent. It was quite immature of her.

"Has anyone seen–?" Yume began, but as she spoke the door opened and Umeko and Mika traipsed in.

"Sorry," Umeko apologised immediately. "Mika had to hand in an assignment."

"What, the one she 'forgot' to hand in today in Bio?" Emiko sneered lightly, not looking up from her books.

"Shut up, Tanaka," Mika growled, glowering at her. Emiko shot her a haughty smirk.

"If you just did your work before it was due–"

"I said, shut up!" Mika snapped, now red-faced. "I _did _do my work!"

"Sure," Sachi muttered under her breath. The cheetah-Mew rounded on her.

"Like _you _can talk, Nakamura!"

"Girls, enough," Yume said, raising her voice just enough to be heard over the ninth grade debaters. Mika, Sachi and Emiko fell silent, shooting each other dark looks across the room, tensions still high.

"Now," Yume began, "as you're all well-aware, it's Friday, and our refrigerator is empty again. I don't want any little issues like we had last week; the chest will be left on the table and I want a group of volunteers to organise themselves to go. You've got ten minutes."

Without another word, the tall, elfin-like girl drifted away to the wardrobe, from which she retrieved a small, brown treasure-chest embroidered with gold, which she gave to Momoka. The younger Cyniclon held it in her long, white fingers for a moment, before setting it down on the table in front of her. Everyone's eyes fixed on the innocent little box for a moment. The chatter began to build up again.

"So," Sachi said, bouncing over to Akane and pretending she couldn't see Emiko sitting right beside her. "Everyone puts five hundred yen in, and Yume transfers it all to a purse, and then we go shopping."

She beamed at the auburn-haired girl and held out her upturned palm to show Akane her contribution. As the shy girl watched on, Sachi leaned over and dropped it into the treasure chest.

"Done," she said happily, dusting her hands off, like she'd been digging in the garden. Behind her, Sazuki and Onchou added their money to the growing collection. Shortly after, Kasai dropped her and Naomi's combined contributions in.

Akane wordlessly rose from her seat and headed to the small drawer beside her bed, from which she took her little beaded purse. She unzipped it, hoping no-one was watching her, and counted how much was inside. To her relief, it was enough for just over three donations. The allowance her grandmother had sent her off with her would cover the refilling of the refrigerator for a few weeks. After that, however, she would be faced with a dilemma.

But she'd worry about that later.

Akane returned the purse to the drawer and added her five hundred yen to the chest, her conscience appeased. When Emiko reached over to add her share, shooting her a grin, she returned it with a tiny smile of her own.

"Are we ready?" Yume asked, returning from where Akane assumed must have been the bathroom. She was dressed in a pair of slender, dark jeans with a slight bell-bottom, a skin-tight cream turtleneck with tee sleeves, and a pair of black leather heels. It was a stunningly flattering outfit for her long-limbed, slender physique.

"I'll go," Onchou offered first, flicking her shoulder length brown ringlets out of her face.

"Me, too," said Momoka, bouncing her skinny knees where she sat (still in the middle of the table).

"I make three," Yume murmured to herself. "And Inoue makes four."

"What?" Rin demanded immediately.

"You're coming," Yume snapped, silver eyes narrowing. "Don't even try to argue."

Rin said nothing, sinking lower into the cushions and muttering resentfully to herself. When Yume turned her back she shot a scathing glare in her direction, her small frames flashing in the dorm lights.

"Two more," Yume said, glancing at them all. "Come on. We need to get going before evening sets in."

"We'll come," Sachi piped up, slinging an arm around Akane's small shoulder. "Kikuchi hasn't been outside the grounds yet, and it'll be good to show her the customs of the dorm in case she goes another time."

Yume said nothing else about it, but picked up the chest from the table and began counting out how much money was inside.

"Come on, Akane-chan," Sachi said enthusiastically, dragging her up from her seat and over to the wardrobe. "We need to get changed."

"... Why?" Akane asked quietly, curiosity tinging her small voice. Sachi threw open the sliding door and began pulling items of clothing off her colourful hangers.

"It's like an unspoken rule, really," she replied, thinking about it. "Every time a student leaves campus, we change out of our uniform. That way we can't be told apart from the normal kids in Tokyo."

Akane couldn't imagine why wearing their uniforms among the non-mutant students was considered a bad thing, but she didn't question it further; she gathered her jeans and pink jumper in her arms and followed Sachi to the bathroom to get changed.

Discovering the girls' casual attire was about as interesting as it had been meeting them all. Each girl's dress sense was as unique as her personality. When the six of them gathered back in dorm seventeen, Akane found herself gazing around curiously at everyone, astonished at how different they all looked, and at what each girl considered 'fashionable' to wear.

Aside from mature, smartly-dressed Yume, there was Rin in a loose black singlet and baggy grey sweats, Momoka in a very lacy, off-the-shoulder corset with either sleeves or arm-warmers (Akane couldn't exactly tell what they were) that reached all the way from her upper arms to her knuckles, and an equally frilly skirt, puffed up with net petticoats and adorned with ribbons, which she wore with a pair of black and white striped stockings and patent leather black ballet flats – the whole lot in black, Onchou in a pastel blue summer dress over a pair of denim capris, and clean white tennis shoes, and Sachi in a puff-sleeved white blouse, fitted red tartan vest, denim shorts over black stockings, and black street shoes. She'd tied shiny red ribbons around her spiky blue pigtails to match. Akane felt quite out of sorts standing beside her in her simple jeans and strawberry sweater.

"Right," Yume said, taking control, as always. "Are we finally ready?"

They all responded accordingly, nodding or muttering affirmations.

"Excellent," Yume sighed, her stunning silver eyes flashing with impatience. "Make a circle, please."

Sachi grabbed Akane's hand, and Onchou took hold of the other. They linked up with Momoka, Yume and Rin, and the rest of the girls from dorms seventeen and eighteen watched on as the two Cyniclons present glanced at each other and simultaneously closed their eyes.

The awkward nausea settled in Akane's stomach as the world drained into one blur of colour around her, and the uncomfortable feeling of rushing upwards and downwards at the same time washed over her. Within a second, the distorted world was blurring into focus once more, and she found herself standing on the smooth cement of the tram station platform.

"Forty three seconds until it comes," Momoka's voice said immediately, and Akane felt Sachi and Onchou let go of her hands. She sort of wished they hadn't; her stomach was heaving unpleasantly and her head was still spinning. She took a deep, slow breath in through her nose, willing away the nausea.

"Hey, are you alright, Akane-chan?" Sachi asked. Her blue hair swam in the shy girl's vision. Akane nodded her head carefully.

"Yume-san, she's pale again," Sachi called over her shoulder. In an instant, the tall girl was there, pressing silk-soft fingertips to Akane's forehead.

"Sit her down," she commanded in a low, calm voice. Akane was led over to a bench and, when Yume's hands pressed down gently on her shoulders, she dropped onto it willingly. Her legs felt weak, like jelly.

"Will she be okay?" Onchou's sweet voice was filled with concern.

"She'll be fine," Yume replied firmly. "She just needs to rest for a moment. She's still not used to teleportation."

Sachi sat down beside her, rubbing her back soothingly. True to Yume's word, the nausea gradually passed, her vision focusing, until she sighed tiredly and rubbed her hands over her face.

"Feeling better?" Sachi asked. Akane blushed furiously and nodded.

"... I'm sorry."

"Oh, don't worry about it!" Sachi replied immediately, waving it off with one hand. "It's fine, seriously."

"You're not the first to be affected by teleportation, Kikuchi-san," Yume informed her calmly. Her silvery eyes were wistful and serene.

"Do you want some water, Akane-chan?" Onchou asked, offering out a small bottled decorated with images of _Hello Kitty_. Akane politely declined, mentally kicking herself again for being so weak.

"Tram's coming," Momoka announced. Akane glanced around the platform. The black-haired Cyniclon was swinging lazily around one of the poles supporting the roof of the platform, one white hand gripping it loosely. She reminded Akane of a child for a few short moments. Rin was sitting on one of the other benches, her eyes poring over the novel in her hands. Yume was gazing down the tracks into the distance. Onchou sat down on Akane's other side, tucking her water bottle back into her bag.

The faint clickety-clack of the wheels against the tracks announced the arrival of the tram ten-odd seconds before it appeared. The sound grew louder and louder until it finally pulled into the station, a bright pink caterpillar with large, square windows and a mahogany roof. With a shudder and a squeak, the doors opened and the group clambered aboard, making themselves comfortable on the velvet red benches lining the walls.

As the doors shut again and the tram rumbled away down the tracks with a sharp _ding!_, Yume drifted away to the front, returning with the cherry-blossom-shaped tickets Akane recognised from her first journey on the tram system, back on her first day.

"It takes about three minutes to cross the grounds and reach the back gates," Sachi explained, watching Akane gazing quietly out the windows across the grassy lawns. "But walking would take you at least ten."

It was very pretty, Akane decided. Whoever had designed the gardens had pretty much left them as nature intended, only maintaining the neatly cut lawns. Trees dotted the grassy plain, along with the occasional bench, and sandy paths twisted and twined their way between the several large buildings spread across the campus.

At last, the curled, black iron gates loomed in the distance, and Akane spotted the red brick fence snaking away along the horizon. With a slight shudder, the tram passed through the gates and turned slowly onto the busy Tokyo street. Akane curled around in her seat to glance out at the surrounding city, almost pressing her nose against the pane in her eagerness.

Tall fingers of grey and black rose into the sky on either side, reaching towards the clouds like oversized building blocks. Their enormous panels of glass windows reflected the orange-red dusk of the dying afternoon. Cars, bicycles and taxis whizzed past, and the sidewalks were crowded with brisk-paced city dwellers, their chic sunglasses shining as they clip-clopped up the street, talking hastily into their fancy little cell phones.

After a good ten or fifteen minutes of snaking through the busy Tokyo streets, Akane noticed the other girls starting to shift their weight on their seats, craning their necks to peer out the window. Yume rose gracefully and hooked her long fingers around a thin cord that ran the length of the interior of the tram. With a sharp _ting!, _they began to slow. Brakes squealing and sparks exploding from the overhead electrical wires, the tram came to a stop.

"Come on, Akane-chan," Sachi called, bouncing over to the doors. "This is our stop."

Outside, the air was pleasantly warm, but not uncomfortably so. They were now well into autumn, and the breeze tickling their faces was undeniably cool, for a nice change from the sweltering heat they'd had to endure the past few months.

Akane followed the girls up the busy sidewalk, crossing the heavily-packed road – one of the most terrifying experiences of her entire life – and gazing around curiously at her strange environment as she trotted along, trying desperately to keep up. The idea of getting lost in the city was so unappealing just thinking about it made her stomach wobble.

"There's a cute little grocer's off the side street just down here," Sachi explained conversationally, obviously enjoying their little afternoon escapade. Her pigtails bounced on her head as she skipped along. "We always go there to get our fruit and vegetables. The man who owns it gives us discounts now – we're his regulars!"

She grinned at Akane, her dark eyes sparkling, and the group took a sharp right, leaving the screeching tires, honking horns and whipping winds of passing cars behind them, venturing into the peace and quiet of a little avenue tucked between two gigantic skyscrapers.

"This place," Onchou murmured, dropping back to speak to Akane, "has the sweetest strawberries in all of Tokyo."

"You don't know that for a fact," Rin scoffed. Akane was surprised she'd even caught their conversation; she always seemed so engrossed in her books. Onchou pursed her lips at the elder student, propping her neat little hands on her hips.

"That's such an illogical statement," Rin continued, lifting her stormy eyes from the page to shoot a derisive glance in the other girl's direction. "There are so many grocery stalls in Tokyo. Have you even stopped to _consider _just how enormous this city is?"

"So it might have been a slight exaggeration," Onchou conceded. "But don't ruin the romantic atmosphere of our grocer's for Kikuchi-san."

Rin snorted.

"Romantic? Puh-lease. It's just a veggie market."

For a girl so swept up by love stories, she sure was crude.

Onchou rolled her eyes and smiled at Akane.

"Forget that old prune," she whispered, giggling in the auburn haired girl's ear. "She sucks the joy out of life."

"Heard that," Rin snapped warningly. Sachi stuck her tongue out playfully, looping her arm through Akane's and steering her through the wide, low entrance to a little square shop lined with stalls of fresh produce. It was a rather quaint little place, with a red and white striped curtain over the doorway and cartons of discount harvest crowding the street outside. It was simply and adequately named 'Kudamono Suki' – Fruit Love – and Akane couldn't help but smile a little as she was led inside.

"Good afternoon, my children!" an aged voice bellowed in a warm greeting. Leaning out from behind Rin, Akane's chocolate eyes fell upon a withered elderly man with a beret-style hat pulled down over his tufty white hair and a plastic apron tied over his simple shirt and slacks. A wide grin stretched across his creased face, and his dark eyes – flat brown, like most Japanese – were friendly.

"Good evening, Takeshi-san," Yume greeted, inclining her head politely. Akane followed suit as the other girls mimicked her – even Rin, who managed to continue reading at the same time.

"And who's this little poppet?" old Takeshi asked curiously. Akane blushed when everyone turned and she realised he was gesturing to _her_.

"This is our newest student, Kikuchi Akane," Yume introduced, with a graceful wave of her hand. Akane bowed again. "She's just joined us from the countryside."

Takeshi's eyes lit up.

"Really?" he croaked. "And how are you finding Tokyo, miss Kikuchi? Busy bee, isn't she?"

Akane blushed redder and nodded, clasping her hands nervously and chewing her lip.

"Ah, shy little doll, isn't she?" Takeshi said gleefully. "Never you mind, little Kikuchi. You'll open up right soon."

She glanced up at him; he smiled back kindly.

"Especially with _this_ lot looking after you."

Sachi laughed and pushed his shoulder playfully.

"You say that like we're dangerous!"

"Not at all, my sweets, not at all. Now, what can I do for you today?"

They wandered around the store with colourful plastic baskets, arguing over inconsequential matters, like how many punnets of blueberries they should buy, or how many apples they'd need to last the coming week. Akane drifted around quietly like their shadow, gazing curiously at the vast assortment of fruits and vegetables. The grocer's was like a strange, unexpected taste of home, dumped in the middle of the unfamiliar city.

Back home, the grocer was a friendly man well-known among everyone in their tiny little village, even though most of them didn't need to buy their produce, owning their own farms and sewing their own harvest. The fact that everyone seemed to know each other, and the friendly, _local _ambiance of Kudamono Suki reminded her of being back on the farm, and she relished in the rare nostalgia for a welcomed moment.

But, of course, they couldn't stay forever. And so, after paying for their purchases, the girls bowed once more and bade old Takeshi farewell, traipsing back into the alley, their arms laden with heavy, brown paper bags.

"Only the supermarket to go," Sachi explained, shifting the bag in her arms. Akane blinked at her, wondering what she was talking about. Markets, she'd heard of. There was one back home every second Sunday that she often enjoyed attending, just to look at the homemade wares for sale. But a _super_ market...? It sounded quite comical, actually. Like something out of a futuristic movie with flying cars and robots that served in restaurants instead of people...

"It's not far," Sachi said, misreading her expression and mistaking it for displeasure instead of bemusement. "Just a few blocks up the road."

The 'supermarket' turned out to be a big, spacious building with linoleum floors and industrial lights, filled from wall-to-wall with enormous racks stacked with inexpensive, pre-packed goods. Akane felt her eyebrows lift as she followed the girls through the sliding doors. Pleasant, soft music played overhead, interrupted by the occasional message over the intercom for managers to attend specific 'registers', and an array of people browsed the shelves with big steel trolleys.

"Why does Kikuchi look like a kid who's just walked into Disneyland?" Rin asked Yume boredly, without looking up from her book. Momoka glanced over her pale shoulder. Akane was lingering by a magazine rack, her eyes fixed on the many glossy tabloids available. She focused on tuning in to the shy girl's channel (1), and was met with an overpowering aura of genuine surprise.

"She's never been in a supermarket before," she announced, pure shock painting her pixie-like features. Yume's slender eyebrows kicked up a little. Sachi blinked twice – one a double-take – and Onchou giggled into her hand.

"Really?"

Akane sensed their gazes upon her and glanced over out of the corner of her eye, stepping back from the magazine rack and blushing furiously. Hopefully they didn't think she was a freak, or anything... Was it weird to look at the glossy booklets?

"It's like she's from another universe," Onchou murmured softly, without thinking.

"Not funny," Momoka replied dryly, golden eyes flashing. Onchou laughed, realising her mistake.

"Sorry," she giggled. "But it's true, though, isn't it? It's as if she's stepped out of the twentieth century, or something."

"I wonder if she's ever seen a TV..." Sachi trailed off thoughtfully.

"Don't be stupid," Rin scoffed, whacking her over the head with her book. "She's not _that _ignorant."

Sachi grinned and rubbed the back of her head as Akane quickly rejoined them, blushing madly and staring at her feet.

"... I'm sorry..."

"Whatever for, my dear?" Sachi asked merrily, throwing her arm around the shy girl's shoulders. "You've never been to a supermarket before?"

Akane shook her head, a little miserably.

"No problem," Sachi replied easily. "Come on. I'll show you 'round."

"Yume-sama," Onchou said quickly, watching the pair split from the rest of the gang, which was starting to drift down towards the frozen refrigerators. Yume turned obediently, catching sight of the stragglers. A small smile toyed with the corners of her slender lips as she watched Sachi explaining Pocky to a bewildered Akane.

"It's okay. They'll meet us later."

X

So many _things_!

Akane had wandered from aisle to aisle, her eyes raking along the items tightly packed onto the steel shelves – so tightly packed that they were almost overflowing! It was unlike anything she'd ever seen. So many products for sale in one place. It was like... like... like a grocer, butcher, baker, confectioner, patisserie and department store in one enormous room! She'd never imagined someone would combine all of them and make a mega-store. It was quite amazing, really.

She stood out the front of the supermarket (now she understood why the 'super' was necessary), nibbling on a long, thin biscuit dipped in strawberry flavouring. Sachi had bought the box of sweets for her when she'd learned the shy girl had never eaten one before.

"You've never had Pocky?!" she'd all but shrieked, to which, of course, Akane had blushed madly. _"Pocky_?! You're serious?"

The blue haired girl rested against the wall, chomping contentedly on her own 'Pocky' and gazing thoughtfully at the passing cars. The sun was well and truly setting now, and soon it would be nightfall.

"Do you like Tokyo, Akane-chan?" Sachi randomly asked, out of nowhere. Akane blinked for a moment, then opened her mouth to speak, but her friend interrupted her.

"No, I mean, do you _actually _like it here?"

Akane took a deep breath, staring at the ground for a moment.

"... Yes."

"Why?" Sachi asked, her blue fringe falling across one eye as she cocked her head. She seemed genuinely curious, so Akane swallowed her nervousness and considered the question.

"... It's... different."

"Different good or different bad?"

Akane ignored the blush that was creeping up her cheeks at the direct inquisition. If she couldn't talk to her host student (and probably her closest friend), then who _could_ she talk to? She settled for, "... Different... interesting."

Sachi nodded to herself, apparently content with this answer, and reached into the box for another strawberry Pocky. For several seconds, the pair was left to their individual thoughts, the silence broken by the whizzing of the cars that sped past.

"What was your hometown like?" Sachi asked eventually. Akane's heart jumped a little. It was the first time anyone had asked her anything about herself, or her life before the academy, since she'd arrived.

She was quiet for a long moment, and the livelier girl wondered if she'd heard the question. She was about to repeat herself when Akane finally responded.

"... Very small," she murmured. Sachi blinked at her, willing her to continue.

"... And quiet."

"Was it a city?" Sachi asked. Akane shook her head.

"Town?"

Another head-shake.

"Village?"

Akane nodded.

"Wow... This really must be different for you, then."

Akane didn't respond. It was quite a rhetorical comment.

"How did Shirogane-sensei find you?" Sachi murmured, obviously pondering to herself. The question didn't seem to be directed at Akane, so she opted not to answer.

"So," Sachi said, cheerful once more. "Tell me about your home."

"... It's a farm," Akane began awkwardly, wondering how much she should say; what would be an appropriate amount to talk about.

"And?" Sachi urged, beginning her fourth Pocky.

"... Well..." Akane trailed off. "... We have lots of animals, and fields... of corn... and wheat... and rice..."

"And who's 'we'?" Sachi asked. To her curiosity, Akane was stubbornly silent, deliberately not looking at her. Obviously her family was not something she was comfortable talking about. The blue haired girl couldn't help but find this intriguing. She yearned to dig up the answers, but knew it wasn't her place to pry where she wasn't wanted.

Still... it was very odd behaviour...

"I live just in the outskirts of Tokyo," she said, changing tacts and shifting the conversation to herself. It was the most she'd ever heard Akane say at one time, and she was keen to see how much more she could get out of her.

Akane blinked attentively, interested, so she continued.

"With my mother, and my father, and my jerk of an older brother, and my irritating idiot of a younger brother, and our dog, Shimi (2), and our cat, Ashi (3). Yes, she really is actually evil. We named her that after she carefully plotted to kill Shimi. If Dad hadn't caught her, she'd have succeeded, too – she's too conniving for her own good. True story."

Akane giggled softly, her eyes twinkling, and Sachi grinned, overjoyed at her success. Excessive chatter (well, by Akane's standards, anyway) _and _a laugh. She was on a roll tonight!

"Ready to go?" Yume's voice said out of nowhere, and their conversation was cut short as the other four rejoined them, an assortment of plastic bags burdening their arms.

"Ready, Freddy," Sachi replied, sighing and pushing off from the wall.

"Ready... Freddy?" Onchou inquired, shooting her a strange look. Sachi shrugged.

"The Americans say it (4)," was her offered explanation.

They traipsed back up the still-busy road, despite peak hour having subsided, and waited at the little pink tram stop for the tram, which trundled up the tracks eventually, omitting sharp zaps and shooting orange-white sparks that rained down like sparkles every now and then. They clambered aboard and dropped wearily into their seats, content to be heading back to the academy.

* * *

Of course, Akane's query was never really answered.

The girls left the school and returned again, and she never understood why they'd had to wear casual dress beyond the gates. There certainly hadn't seemed to be any dangerous threat that could constitute the need to remove their uniforms. She'd have thought the girls would be proud to wear their uniforms and represent the academy when venturing among the other school students, but for some reason, which she was growing more curious to know as the days wore on, they were not. It almost seemed like they were _afraid_ of being seen in the academy uniform, like they were all secretly frightened of some unknown, terror-striking monster that lurked beyond the gates.

Akane couldn't fathom their seemingly unwarranted fear, but knew better than to doubt them. After all, she _was _the newcomer, and she knew perfectly well that seven nervous girls were probably the correct majority, as opposed to one ignorant one.

And besides, she was sure she'd find out what it was soon enough.

Which, coincidentally and highly unluckily for her, she did.

Exactly a week from their first expedition into the surrounding city, the girls of 9B were held back late due to a P.E. class that ran over time. After a good few hours of forcing their exhausted bodies through ridiculously difficult obstacle courses, of climbing, and crawling, and running, and jumping, and pulling, and rolling, and clambering, and heaving, the poor, exhausted girls dragged themselves back to the change rooms and managed to peel their sweaty sport uniforms off their aching bodies, dragging their school uniforms (which felt like they were strangling and suffocating them) on and stumbling back up to the pink castle.

Of course, they were already horribly late, so when Sachi, Sazuki, Kiseki, Emiko, Mika, Umeko and Akane practically collapsed through the door to dorm seventeen, dragging their blazers off and falling onto bunks and sofas like floppy dolls, they were met by a deeply unimpressed Yume.

"Where have you been?" she demanded, silver eyes blazing.

"Sorry... Yume...sama..." Sachi panted.

"P.E..." Sazuki trailed off weakly. She tried again. "P... E..."

"Late," Emiko gasped, dropping weak-kneed into a seat at the table. "Ran... late."

"That's no excuse," Yume scowled. "We meet here at four o'clock sharp every Friday. You girls know that, and you're setting a bad example for Kikuchi. Now, as punishment for making everyone else wait, the six of you are in charge of getting the groceries tonight."

"Aww, Yume-sama," Sachi groaned. "We went last week!"

"Too bad, Nakamura-san," Yume replied, unforgiving. "Maybe next time you'll make sure you get here on time."

"But–"

"No buts. Up. Now. No, you don't have time to get changed, Tanaka-san," Yume said, for Emiko had started pulling weakly at her neck tie. "If you don't leave now, the grocer's will shut, and then we'll be in trouble. Momoka, would you take them to the tram stop? I have a council meeting to attend."

With another displeased glare at the exhausted ninth graders, Yume shut her eyes and vanished on the spot.

"Come, delinquents," Momoka teased, her silky voice light, her golden eyes twinkling with amusement. "Over here."

Grumbling, the six of them dragged themselves over to the door, creating a circle and linking hands. Akane watched quietly as Sachi scowled heavily, finding herself in the unfortunate position of standing right beside Emiko. Both of them looked incredibly unhappy with this coincidental arrangement, and pulled faces of disgust before hooking the very tips of their fingers together reluctantly.

After another short, stomach-churning journey through time and space, they were standing on the platform. Akane breathed slowly through her nose, determined not to let herself get dizzy this time. There had to be a point _sometime _where she'd feel comfortable with the horrible teleportation process.

"Here," Momoka said, handing Sazuki the purse filled with the weeks' allowance. "Good luck. Don't get back too late."

"Or what? She'll punish us again?" Sachi snapped wearily. Momoka said nothing; just stepped back, closed her eyes, and vanished on the spot.

The girls said nothing while they waited for the tram, nothing while they endured the tram ride into Tokyo, and nothing while they dragged their jelly legs up the road towards the grocer's. They were even silent heading to the supermarket. Akane guessed – correctly – that everyone was simply too exhausted for conversation. Fong-sensei had pushed them awfully hard today, and each girl felt as though she'd met and possibly surpassed her limitations. All anyone wanted to do was go back to the dorm and sleep.

Of course, they were all ignoring Shirogane-sensei's latest Bio/Genetics essay, which they'd been given only the weekend to complete.

They were halfway to the tram stop, after finishing up at the supermarket, when trouble struck.

"Hey, freaks!"

"Hey, you! Mew Mew losers! Yeah, you! We're talking to you."

Sazuki had caught on first, and looked up from the pavement in surprise. She'd no doubt forgotten they were still wearing their uniforms, and seemed shocked that someone had recognised them as Mew Academy students.

A group of teenage boys were relaxing across the street, some lounging on the cement, others resting against the wall of the closest building. They numbered six or seven in total.

"What do you want?" Sachi called. Despite her exhaustion, Akane caught the suspicion in her voice.

"Oh, nothing," one guy – who seemed to be their leader – replied lazily, smirking at them. He pushed off from the wall, wandering casually towards them. The girls tensed, instinctively bunching a little closer together.

"I've just got a few questions," the guy called, stooping to scoop something up from the ground.

"Well, hurry up and ask them, then," Sachi snapped. "We haven't got all day."

"You know," the guy said, amused, "I don't like your tone, missy. You'd better speak to me with respect."

"Why should I?" she demanded. "You're no superior to me."

"Sachi," Sazuki warned quietly, stepped back as the guy's friends began to assemble around him. Whatever he was doing, they'd caught on, and all of them seemed eager to participate.

"Oh-ho-ho," the guy laughed calmly. "Y'hear that, guys? Miss Blue-Hair here thinks she's our _equal._"

"And what do you mean by that?" Sachi demanded hotly, flushing as the boys chortled.

"Nakamura!" Emiko hissed furiously. Akane's heart pounded in her chest. Whoever these guys were, if the behaviour of her classmates was anything to go by, they definitely weren't good news.

"I _mean_: How can you idiots hold your heads up high while you walk on _our _streets?" the guy spat, suddenly resentful, disgusted. "How can you think for _one minute_ that it's okay for you live on our land, drink our water, and breathe our air?"

"Hey! We're just as human as you are!" Mika cried indignantly. "We have just as much right to life as you do!"

"Excuse me?" another guy demanded. "Would you mind repeating that?"

She faltered, huddling closer to the girls.

"How _dare _you walk among us and call yourselves 'human'?" the first guy snapped, glaring at them. He tossed whatever he was holding up and down in his hand, repetitively. "You're not _human. _You're just a bunch of mutant science experiments gone wrong. You're not even decent enough to be considered aliens. You're nothing but a bunch of _freaks_. And you're polluting our air."

"Watch your tongue!" Sachi spat venomously, poisonous. He laughed openly.

"What're you going to do?" he jeered. "Seriously? What would you do _right now_, if I threw this at you? I'm a pretty good throw, by the way; reserve pitcher for our baseball team."

Akane suddenly saw what it was he was holding.

A rock, just smaller than his fist; a piece of shattered cement from a slab of sidewalk which had been pulled up, and was in the process of being re-done. The remains of the old slab lay in a heaped pile of cement chunks, which had seemed innocent enough before, but now looked incredibly lethal.

"This would do some serious damage, you know," the guy said conversationally. "A piece of cement this size could cause brain damage, no doubt about it. Not that it'd matter much to us, but I just thought you might like to know."

"Back off, bastard," Sachi warned, though her voice wavered, betraying her fear. He snickered.

"You're not as tough as your pathetic headmaster likes to think you are," he sneered, gazing fondly at the hunk of rock in his hand. "I bet you won't even be able to protect yourselves."

Akane's heart leaped at the distinct sense of danger invoked by his words. Any second now, he would attack them. It was unquestionable.

"Nakamura, stop it!" Sazuki cried hysterically. Sachi fought her restraining arm off.

"We can't just stand here and let those pigs insult us!" she snapped.

"It's all good and well to fire retorts," Umeko said in a low, rushed voice. "But when push comes to shove, we're outnumbered, we're first year students, and they've got weapons. Don't do anything stupid, or we're in big trouble."

"We can fight them," Sachi said confidently, tensing as the boy started tossing the cement rock up and down again, smiling menacingly across the street at them.

"No," Emiko snapped. "We can't."

"Who are you kidding, Sachi?" Sazuki whimpered. "We can't fight them!"

"So, what? We're just gonna let them stone us?" Sachi demanded, clearly appalled at the idea.

"I have a plan," Mika suggested.

"And what's that?" Emiko asked dryly. "Please don't say 'run', because that is the most clichéd, stupid idea any movie writer has ever had."

But what Mika's plan actually was they would never know, for in the next second, the boy was calling across to them.

"Time's up. I hope you've got a cell phone, 'cause you're gonna need an ambulance."

"Please, stop!" Sazuki cried desperately. At the same time, Sachi cried, "Mew Mew Sachi, Metamorphosis!", and Emiko and Umeko cried, "_NO_!"

In an explosion of white light, Sachi transformed into her Mew form, reappearing in the grey academy costume, her brown tail dangling behind her legs.

"Nakamura, you idiot!" Umeko roared.

"Yume-sama's going to kill us!" Emiko moaned.

"If those guys don't do it first," Mika pointed out. "Mew Mew Mika, Metamorphosis!"

"Mika!" Umeko snapped furiously, as the cheetah-Mew appeared, taking her place beside Sachi, her cat ears perking up at the prospect of a fight.

"So the freaks want to play," the guy commented lazily. "This just got a little more interesting." He held the rock up in his fist. "Anyone else? Or are the rest of you content with watching these two getting slaughtered?"

"As if, moron," Umeko muttered under her breath. "I'm going to _kill _you two! Mew Mew Umeko, Metamorphosis!"

"Mew Mew Emiko, Metamorphosis!" Tanaka conceded reluctantly, tossing her ebony ringlets over her shoulder. The two girls joined the others, Umeko's bee wings buzzing angrily, Emiko's scaly skin practically glowing sickly green.

"Oh, come on, Kiseki," Sazuki sighed irritably. The last two transformed, and the five girls formed a sort of semi-circle around Akane.

"Protect her, no matter what!" Sachi snapped.

"Shut up, Nakamura," Umeko growled. "We're not stupid."

"You got us into this mess," Emiko added. "Now get us the hell out."

It quickly became apparent, however, that despite the girls' valiant courage, none of them had any experience with what to do in a real fight. They'd only been attending Kisshu-sensei's Tech classes for a month and a half (5), and they'd covered little else besides transforming in the presence of an enemy (which they'd all have received bold A's for, had this been a midterm) and the basics of using their animalistic instincts during battle, for evasion and detection of enemy movement, and the like.

"Great," Sachi huffed. "Now what?"

They didn't have much time to think. The guy promptly launched the first chuck of cement, and it soared in a rapid arch towards them; so small that it disappeared from sight for a moment, throwing them all into panic. Sazuki instinctively grabbed Akane and took to the air, beating her beautiful butterfly wings to support both their weight as she climbed higher above the ground.

Akane's stomach dropped, and nausea washed up her throat. She wasn't good with heights. The ground below spun in a disconcerting circle as dizziness swamped her brain, but she could still make out the forms of Kiseki and Mika springing away from the sidewalk with speed that could only be inhuman. Mika's spotted cat tail curled behind her, bristling as she glared at their attackers. Kiseki bounced up atop a parked car, where she perched, unnoticed by the boys, who were too busy focusing on the girls high above.

Another wave of cement was launched, and, with strangled cries, Sachi and Umeko dove for cover. Akane's heart leaped into her mouth as Emiko was left vulnerable in the middle of the sidewalk. For some strange reason, she seemed incapable of taking action; she merely turned on the spot and hunched her shoulders up, bracing for the impact. With an odd, sharp _clunk!, _the chunk of concrete hit her back. A stab of horror pierced Akane's stomach.

"Tanaka-san!" Sazuki cried in horror.

"I'm okay!" Emiko called back, glancing up confidently. "Seriously, I'm fine!"

But how that could be possible was beyond Akane. From her clear view above the makeshift battlefield, that hefty lump of rock had met its target with sickeningly perfect precision. How it had managed to not pierce her skin and break her bones was unfathomable.

"Oh!" Sazuki gasped, realisation and wonder filling her voice. "_Oh_!"

"... W-what?" Akane asked breathlessly.

"Tanaka was infused with the green turtle," Sazuki explained, laughing lightly. "Her back is like a plate of rock-hard shell... You know... Like a turtle shell... That's why it didn't hurt her."

Relief washed over the auburn haired girl, and she bravely turned her eyes back to the scene below, watching, like the dozens of passers-by who had gathered in clumps a safe distance from the fight. Emiko's strange back plate also explained her inability to move quickly, since it was universally known that turtles were like snails out of water. She was at a distinct disadvantage compared to the others, but at least she was protected from immediate harm.

Another hail of rock. With a sharp cry, Kiseki tumbled backwards off the car roof.

Everyone's hearts stopped.

Blood drained from Akane's cheeks.

"No..." Sazuki whispered in horror, almost stopping the beating of her wings and sending them plunging to their deaths. Even the guy who'd thrown the cement looked shocked, like he never expected to actually hit one of them.

"You _bastard_!" Sachi shrieked wildly, throwing herself into the street and hurtling towards the bunch of guys.

"Stop!" a smooth voice commanded sharply, and everyone froze in their places. Below them, Yume, Momoka, and three other Cyniclons had materialised out of thin air; one with spiky, ice-blue hair, one with long, rose-pink curls, and one with a smooth, seaweed-green ponytail.

"Enough," Yume said icily, her silver eyes sweeping around the street in one quick glance, taking in everyone's whereabouts. They lingered on Kiseki's motionless form, hardening before turning back to the bunch of boys, who suddenly looked mighty uncomfortable.

"Tell me," she said in a deadly, silky tone. "What did you hope to achieve this afternoon?"

No-one answered; they all looked down, or away.

"I asked a question," Yume said, her voice rising. The main guy mumbled something incoherent.

"What was that?" she demanded furiously.

"They wanted to teach these 'mutant freaks' a _real_ lesson," Momoka explained, practically spitting the words, like she wanted them out of her mouth as quickly as possible. Her golden eyes blazed with an icy fury.

"Stop cheating, Momoka," the pink haired Cyniclon sighed.

"Chiyoko, take the child back to the academy," Yume commanded quietly. "Kinomoto-san, you can come down now."

She turned to the human boys lingering awkwardly on the sidewalk, looking very much like they wanted to high-tail it out of there.

"And are you satisfied?" she demanded, her voice flat and dangerous. "Was your lesson taught well enough?"

Clearly, she didn't want an actual answer; their discomfort seemed to be enough.

"Get out of here," she murmured coldly. They bailed as fast their legs would take them. Sazuki set Akane down gently on the ground, much to her relief. The pink haired Cyniclon gently scooped up Kiseki's lifeless body, and the pair of them promptly disappeared.

"Everyone," Yume said, still icy. "Here. Now."

They all gathered in a guilty group around her, looking anywhere but directly at her.

"_Mika_?" the green haired alien stuttered, startled.

"Hi, Asato-kun," she replied glumly, sighing. He glanced at her, like he wanted to say something more, but a look from Yume silenced him, and he contented himself with shooting furtive, inquisitive glances in the cheetah-Mew's direction. Akane eyed him quietly. So this was the famous Asato Sachi was always teasing her about...

"Yume-sama," Sachi began, but Yume cut her off.

"I don't want to hear it. Kaishou, alert Shirogane-sensei of what has happened here this afternoon. Let him know we're returning now."

The ice-blue haired alien's peach coloured eyes flicked between the ninth-grade girls before he nodded once and promptly disappeared. Silence descended once more.

"I don't know what happened here today," Yume said quietly. She quickly amended herself, catching Momoka's expression. "Okay, I do know what happened here today. I do not want to _talk_ about what happened here today. Whatever caused the disagreement between the two groups should not have warranted physical action. Especially not a _brawl_."

The words were like a whip, lashing and stinging. The girls flinched with every syllable that rolled off her tongue.

"Today you have disgraced the academy," Yume said. The quiet of her voice was worse than any shout could have been. "You behaved inappropriately and unprofessionally, not to mention highly immaturely. I can't even begin to think of the punishment I would award you for your display this afternoon. I'm leaving it up to Shirogane-sensei. Return to your normal forms at once and get ready to go home."

Glancing furtively at one another, the four remaining Mews transformed back into their human forms. Akane's overworked heart melted just a little more when Sazuki attempted to subtly wipe away the tears rolling down her cheeks. The slow-motion replay of Kiseki recoiling off the top of the car sent waves of nausea pounding through her already unsettled stomach.

Without a word, Akane floated quietly to the taller girl's side, and slipped her hand gently into Sazuki's. She glanced up, trying to muster a weak smile, but the anxiety was painfully clear in her eyes.

"Come," Yume said with finality, glancing at them all reproachfully. They joined hands, and Akane gazed around at everyone for a moment. She now had her answer – oh, how she now wished she'd never been curious in the first place! – as to why it was feared for them to leave the premises in their uniforms. She would never have expected it was because the normal human students were prejudiced against and resentful of them.

But she couldn't help but wonder if, despite the enormity of the trouble they would be in when they returned to the school, something good had come from this awful experience.

No-one could argue that, when the dire situation arose, the starkly dissimilar group of girls had banded together to support each other and protect each other, no matter how much they disliked each other in reality. They were all undeniably closer now, even if just a tiny little bit. Even Sachi and Emiko had fought side-by-side... somehow...

The two Cyniclons closed their eyes, and the almost-but-not-quite-familiar feeling washed over Akane as they were sucked through that split-second in time, before their feet hit sturdy ground once more. They were cold, they were hungry, and they were exhausted beyond belief.

But they were home, and they were safe. With a strange sort of jolt of her stomach, she realised that, for the first time, she had unsuspectingly considered Mew Academy her home.

And after tonight... she didn't think she would ever leave the campus again.

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FOOTNOTES:

(1) 'Channel' – This will be explained later on. Basically, Momoka just tapped into a stream of thoughts/emotions from Akane's mind.

(2) 'Shimi': spot/stain.

(3) 'Ashi': evil (or, amusingly, 'leg/reed')

(4) 'Ready Freddy' – I hope you Yanks really _do _say this. The Aussies occasionally do (not very often, mind you – just us uncool kids XD), but I swear we stole it from you guys.

(5) You've got to remember that, while it's been only two weeks for Akane, the other first year students started a month earlier, so they've been in classes for a month and a half :)

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**So, there we have it. A nice little conflict. Gotta love that word XD**

**When I first began this chapter, I entitled it 'scene five', as one does. But then I decided the direction I was taking with the new part of the story wasn't quite fitting. So I picked a different route for the chapter and re-wrote it. But THEN I decided that it, too, was't quite right for the next chapter. So I started yet again, and you have thus just completed reading 'scene five -- alternative 2'. HAHAHA. **

**A lot of work went into this chapter. In fact, it got so long, I almost split it into two smaller chapters, one of 14 pages, one of 8-ish pages (that's right, this chapter was about 23 pages long!) - I know Tomahawk would've appreciated it if I had XD - but I decided not to, because I'd rather one chapter that was a couple of pages too long as opposed to 2 chapters that were both insufficient (especially the second one!). So ya got a monster chapter in the end :P**

**But what I HAVE done is put a line break where the original 'chapter 16' ended, and the hypothetical 'chapter 17' began, so you can see what chapter 16 was going to be like.**

**I personally like it the way it is :D**

**Now, everyone reading, if you haven't visited my profile for a while, I've recently added some CHARACTER ART, which you can find the links to in the Mew Academy section. Check 'em out if you haven't already. And while you're there, have a vote in the POLL up at the moment. It's a VERY important poll; we've been debating this for the past six months on the forum. Every vote counts massively! XD**

**So, I'll leave you with that - a chapter and author's notes of epic proportions! - and bail. Gotta read _Hamlet _before my exam O_O**

**Thanks for reading! Please drop us a review, ne?**

**Until the next chapter,**

**Cherrie xx**

**P.S. -- If anyone's interested, I created Chiyoko and Kaishou on the spot, out of thin air, because I needed more Cyniclons. You lot should've given me Cyniclons!!! DX**


	17. A1,P2,S6: A Glimpse of Them

**Greetings, Fictioners :)**

**So, by my standards, this chapter is considerably shorter than the rest. But that's okay, because I've been deliberately hanging back from updating this story while I wait for something in particular.**

**But I got impatient, and I had a small burst of inspiration, so I decided to belt this one out as a sort of filler, even though it does help advance the story XD**

**So, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. There will be more stuff in the post-A/N :)**

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**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah. Don't own TMM. Next.**

**Dedications...**

**Story for MewCuxie12. Chapter for... xXxChiharu-Chan-1000-SpringsXx, my nemesis, because she managed to get up to date on this story in one sitting (as far as I know, anyway!). Kudos, beloved rival of mine :P Suck on the awesomeness of this chapter!!! XD**

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ACT ONE - PART TWO - SCENE SIX

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She strode down the long corridor, her waist-length silvery-lilac hair shining in the dying rays of afternoon sun streaming through the glass windows. Her feet made no noise against the polished floorboards; she was as silent as stealth itself.

Students scarpered out of the way when they saw her coming; the younger were so terrified of her that her mere presence was enough to have them quaking in their skirts, the older had enough respect for her to stay out of her way. She liked peace, and she liked solitude, and this was well-known among the student body.

Though she was only too aware of those leaping aside in alarm, her impassionate, lavender gaze was fixed straight ahead. While she might seem entirely heartless, the Cyniclon junior had enough compassion to let them pretend she didn't notice them. She frightened them enough as it was. She needn't petrify them further by looking at them.

"Yume."

The voice that greeted her was soft and gentle. It belonged to another Cyniclon; a slender, pale-skinned senior with luscious rose-pink ringlets, and gentle amber eyes. She had risen from the plush sofa she was perched on as the taller girl had made her appearance. The door shut quietly behind her. The senior lounge was comfortably furnished, with squashy sofas and lacquered coffee tables. The windows along one wall opened onto a balcony dotted with tables and benches. A number of seniors sat at them, bent over heavy textbooks. Hardly anyone looked up, and those who did didn't dispute her presence among them. It had been long since accepted that the silver-haired junior had as much power and status as they did.

"Chiyoko," Yume acknowledged with a small nod of her head. A few strands of lavender slipped over one slender shoulder.

"Where are your minors?" the pink-haired Cyniclon asked curiously.

"With the headmaster," Yume replied, continuing her walk without stopping to chat. Chiyoko fell into step beside her.

"Will they be expelled?"

"Of course not," Yume replied, derision tinging her calm voice. Chiyoko glanced at her out of the corner of her eye.

"They won't be punished too badly ,then?" she asked, her worry evident in her large eyes. "They _were _being attacked, after all, it's hardly a case of students deliberately breaking the rules–"

"Oh, their actions were deliberate," Yume said firmly, to the other's surprise. "How do you explain an entire group of students suddenly becoming Mews on the street – an accident? The result of a scientific experiment gone wrong? I don't think so. Yes, Chiyoko, they were acting out of self-defence," she acknowledged quickly, having caught Chiyoko's expression of protest. "But they were in the wrong nonetheless. I doubt Shirogane's punishment will be too heavy, though."

A small frown of distaste pulled at her pale lips, as though she didn't quite believe the headmaster's decision was the right one in the matter. She said no more on it, though, and strode smoothly through another doorway, into a small, thickly-carpeted room, with high arched windows, tall bookcases that lined the walls between, and a large, old-fashioned fireplace surrounded by worn armchairs. Fire crackled merrily in the grate, bathing the room in soft, yellow-orange light. Warmth washed over the pair as they walked across the floor to one of the old wooden desks dotting the floor, around which several Cyniclons sat. Few human seniors entered the room; they chose to seat themselves outside, whereas the aliens preferred the dim warmth of the Den.

"Momoka," Yume said, by way of greeting, and the black-haired Cyniclon glanced up from her books, surprised. Her golden eyes flicked to Chiyoko, and back to Yume.

"Something is bothering you," she noted in her quiet, eerie voice. She gazed meaningfully at Yume, who pursed her lips and shifted her silvery gaze, focusing on fixing her thoughts on something dull and unrelated to her troubles.

"You shouldn't be in here," she said sternly, changing the subject. Momoka scowled.

"I'm only one year too young, Yume," she replied. "And studying in the library is so distracting. The humans' thoughts are so irritatingly obtuse..."

"Nevertheless, you're effectively breaking the rules in coming here," Yume said, turning back from the two seniors at the next table, who were deep in gossipy discussion.

"Give it a rest, Yume," blue-haired Kaishou sighed, dragging himself out of his textbook to shoot her a disapproving scowl. "Bestow your tight rule-abiding snobbishness on the humans, not us."

Yume set her eyes upon him, and her cold expression was enough for him to shake his head to himself and return to his books, recognising the danger in pursuing the point.

"Out," she said unsympathetically, returning to Momoka.

"Yume–"

"Don't try my patience, Momoka. It's been strained enough this afternoon. Out."

With a heavy sigh, the black-haired alien slammed her book shut. She glanced up resentfully at the older girl from underneath her dark lashes.

"You can block your mind all you want, Yume. I don't need to be a mind-reader to see something's bothering you. It's painted all over your face."

Yume opened her mouth to retort, but Momoka shut her eyes and disappeared in her seat, taking her books with her. Smoothing her features over, Yume drifted over to one of the large, arched windows, gazing pensively across the darkening lawns.

"What's wrong with her today?" Kaishou asked Chiyoko in a muttered undertone. Chiyoko risked a glance at the tall, elfin girl's back. She sank into Momoka's vacated seat.

"You mean, aside from the disaster with her dormitory minors and those human brats?" she murmured.

"Yes," Kaishou said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Aside from that."

"I don't know," Chiyoko whispered, glancing over furtively again. "I think something's wrong."

By the window, Yume raised one long-fingered, pale hand, pressing her palm lightly against the glass. Her irritation at their childish whispering threatened to overcome her; beneath her soft fingertips the pane slowly frosted over.

"Well, just because she's descended from nobility, she doesn't have the right to stalk around with her nose in the air," Kaishou muttered angrily. "Who is she to treat the rest of us like inferiors? If anyone should be walked all over, it's those annoying human _Mew Mews, _filthy mutants_._"

With a tinkling crash, the pane cracked underneath her hand and shattered, pieces of frozen glass tumbling to the floor at her feet. The atmosphere in the comfy room immediately dropped a few degrees; the cool wind bleeding in through the broken window toyed with several strands of Yume's lavender hair. She turned to the alarmed pair, her eyes blazing.

"_Filthy mutants_?" she demanded icily, striding smoothly back to the table, her voice frighteningly calm.

"You see them otherwise?" Kaishou demanded coolly, though under her gaze he cowered a little in his seat. The rest of the Cyniclon students in the room had fallen silent to watch on with tense eyes.

"Those _mutants_ risked their lives to save our species," Yume said silkily, disgust etched on her face. Her voice betrayed none of the raging anger that burned in her silver eyes. "They offered us protection and security when we suffered. When it looked as though extinction of our race was merely moments away, the humans forgave our treacherous ambition and welcomed our alliance with open arms. They didn't have to. We were their enemy. Who are you to judge them when they have been so unconditionally kind to us?"

Kaishou shifted uncomfortably in his seat. The silence pressed in on them like thick claustrophobia.

Her eyes never leaving the older boy's face, Yume stepped back from the table. Chiyoko looked positively awful, wriggling in her chair and looking as though she very much wished the dispute could be resolved and harmony restored. She never had been one for fighting.

"Perhaps those who feel as though they are being ill-treated are merely acknowledging the imperfection of their own virtue," Yume murmured, still gazing unnervingly at Kaishou. "Perhaps it's merely guilt acting upon their wretched conscience."

Stung, Kaishou's cheeks pinkened ever so slightly, and he turned back to his book, gazing so hard at the words that they blurred before him.

Without looking at anyone else, Yume swept from the room. If she let her temper get the better of her again, there would be worse aftermath than a single shattered window pane.

"Are you...?" Chiyoko trailed off nervously, afraid that he would snap at her, which he shortly did.

"Yes, Chiyoko, I'm fine!"

"Okay!" she squeaked quickly. "I just–"

"Go," Kaishou muttered, understanding. She sighed, glanced once at the now empty doorway, obviously torn between staying and going, and reluctantly closed her eyes.

X

The room was dimly lit, stuffy, and a little on the cool side. She stepped around a set of shelves packed with discarded junk and picked her way between the aisles of _stuff_, glancing up at the rusty maze of piping running across the roof above her head. With the slightest concentration of her mind, a small bubbling noise rumbled through the tin tubes, and steam melted from the pipes, instantly warming the air around her.

The room was very long, but rather narrow. In fact, it would have been quite large, had it not been packed to the pipes with boxes and cabinets and shelves of objects deigned obsolete. Books, old uniforms, broken devices – an odd assortment of items poked out of the lids of cardboard boxes dropped unceremoniously on the concrete floor.

It seemed the room was used as a sort of enormous attic; all the things once used by students and teachers, but no longer, had been dumped in here. Yume wondered vaguely whether Shirogane ever planned on cleaning it all out; indeed, the room was so tightly cluttered that it was quite a marvel that he'd even managed to fit so much in there in the first place.

She had been here several times before, though never really by choice. Lurking down in the Storeroom, as the elfin girl had so affectionately named it one day, would be a certain person whose counsel she had come to seek, yet again. Yume knew she would be down here, far underneath the corridors filled with bubbly, chattering students; she was always down here.

She paused in her quiet exploration for a moment; the hot water bubbling in the pipes was doing its job well – almost too well. The steam billowed around her face in curly white puffs, making it difficult to see and breathe, and the Storeroom was now so warm she could feel her skin clamming. She cast her eyes to the pipes once more, and the water quickly stopped bubbling, cooling at a speed that scientists would boggle their minds studying, should they ever witness it.

As the steam dispersed, Yume stood quite still, straining her ears for any noise that might give away the location of the girl she was looking for. At last, a faint scuffling echoed back to her, and she sighed to herself. Of course, she would be _right at the back_ of the room. Why should her search be made any easier?

She followed the noises soundlessly, creeping closer and closer. With each step, the sounds grew louder; it sounded as though whoever else was here was sifting through a pile or box of things, searching for something. Yume peered around every cabinet, hoping each time she did that her gaze would fall upon what she was looking for, frowning in disappointment every time.

But finally, when she reached the most crowded, messiest part of the room, Yume slipped between two closely-packed bookcases and found that she had stumbled across what looked like a small, horribly untidy laboratory. There was stuff_ everywhere_: boxes of nuts and bolts, drawers overflowing with lights and metal springs. Tattered books lay open all over the bench in the middle, which comprised of lots of bricks stacked into a large rectangle.

A small, pale-skinned girl hovered above the table, a low-hanging light bulb dangling over her shoulder from the roof bathing the area with a strangely bright, yet concentrated light. She was muttering quietly to herself, her turquoise hair sticking out around her head like a frizzy halo. If she ever bothered to tame it, it would probably brush her shoulders. As it was, it didn't look like her hair had ever seen a comb, yet it shone in the light.

Her uniform looked a little tattered; some of the seams had split in places, and one of the blazer pockets had been ripped so that it flapped about in a most annoying manner. The girl reached out with one tiny, frail-looking hand, her skin bathed yellowish in the light as she turned the page and read on.

"Rairin."

"Hello," the other replied in a girlish voice, not looking up. "Watch out."

Yume stepped around the bench obediently. She'd known long enough now to just listen to whatever came from the smaller girl's lips; a mere second after she'd moved, the pipe above the place she'd been standing exploded with a rusty clang, and water gushed to the floor. She gazed at it for a short moment; a crackling sound climbed up the jet of water as it froze upwards from the pool on the ground. A few seconds later, all was still, as though someone had pressed the pause button in a film. The two girls ignored the strange chute of water hanging, suspended, between them.

"I don't know if I can help you," Rairin said conversationally, still reading.

"Yes, you do," Yume replied, watching her. "If anyone knows that, you do."

Rairin shot her a grin. Her black eyes crinkled in the corners behind her large, semi-circular spectacles, fixing on the lilac-haired girl for a moment, before returning to the book.

"It's difficult to understand hers," Rairin explained, picking up something in her hands and tinkering with it.

"Why?" Yume asked curiously.

"Because the images don't make sense."

"What do you mean they don't make sense?"

The smaller girl refused to say more, though, and Yume recognised that she needed to change tact. She paced quietly around the brick bench, thinking to herself.

"Can you tell me specific things?"

"Like what?" Rairin asked, her dark eyes sparkling. She already knew what was coming, of course. Yume rolled her eyes, knowing that the younger girl simply liked playing games.

"Like..." she trailed off, staring at a pile of books on robots stacked haphazardly on a nearby bookshelf that was already tightly stuffed with thick volumes. "Is she going to stay here?"

"Yes," Rairin replied easily. Yume knew from past experience that it wasn't that easy, though. Assuming from Rairin's answers often led to hefty mistakes. She had to delve deeper.

"Is she going to stay here... for a long time?"

"... Perhaps," Rairin replied cryptically. Yume restrained a groan.

"For the rest of this semester?" she asked instead. Rairin smiled at her, clearly delighted.

"You're getting better at this," she praised.

"The question, Rairin."

"Yes."

Yume nodded thoughtfully to herself. So she needn't worry immediately about what would happen to the strange, powerless girl currently sitting in the headmaster's office. The thought helped her relax a little. It was tiring trying to figure out her strange condition on top of trying to keep on top of her studies _and _control a bunch of particularly boisterous teenage girls insistent on being the at the centre of whatever trouble happened at the academy.

"And will she become a Mew?"

Rairin frowned a little; her small pouty lips curved downwards, and her black eyes flashed.

"I can't tell..."

Yume believed her. She'd yet to meet someone so absolutely honest in her life. If she had to hand-pick a small group of people she seriously trusted in this place, Rairin was easily one of them.

"You can't tell?" she asked. The other shook her head.

"But what happens when you–?"

"My mind goes fuzzy," Rairin explained. Clearly this troubled her. "It goes all cloudy, and it's impossible to tell what I'm looking at. There's something _there_, but I just can't see what it is. It's very frustrating."

"So you actually have tried?"

"Of course. She intrigues me as much as the next person."

"I didn't realise you knew that much about her," Yume admitted. It wasn't like she spent much time with the other students, even the Cyniclons. Rairin shot her a scornful look.

"Please," she snorted. "I saw her here long before anyone even knew she existed. Before _Shirogane_ even started looking at her. I started searching her future ages ago."

"But you didn't come up with anything interesting?" Yume asked.

"No," Rairin replied. She sighed. "I gave up when I kept hitting the cloud wall."

"Is there anything special about her?"

"It's hard to tell."

Yume nodded again; this was understandable. It was hard to know these things when part of the girl's future was shrouded in mystery.

"I knew you would come looking," Rairin explained. "So I did my research early."

A smile spread across the taller girl's face. She couldn't help it.

"Oh," Rairin said suddenly, as if remembering something. "Shirogane is going to start doing research on a boy in America."

Yume blinked at her, confused and surprised.

"What does that have to do with–?"

"Nothing," Rairin said. "But I just thought you might find it interesting."

"A boy in America?" Yume clarified. The turquoise-haired girl nodded.

"Why?"

"There's something about him that intrigues him," she replied. "But I don't know what it is. I don't know who the boy is, so I can't really work that out. I'd look into his line if I could."

Yume realised that their conversation was shifting; the thread regarding Akane had drawn to a close. If she didn't excuse herself now, she'd get caught up listening to the strange girl's odd premonitions. It had happened one too many times before, and almost always regarded things utterly unrelated to anything of any kind of importance.

Once, she had found it necessary to discuss the simple fact that Momomiya-sensei was going to wake up late the following Tuesday, forget to brush her hair, wear her shirt inside-out, and fall down the escalator at lunch because her shoe lace was going get stuck in the conveyer belt. When it had actually happened, of course, Yume had watched on in amusement, knowing full-well that no-one was going to help the ditzy red-headed art teacher out but that she'd be fine in the end, but standing around talking about things like that really was a waste of her precious time, no matter how interesting it all was.

"You're going now," Rairin said. It wasn't a question, and it wasn't a guess. A small smile touched Yume's lips.

"Yes, I am. Thank you, Rairin, for your help."

"No trouble," Rairin replied. _Not entirely true, _Yume thought. Like all mind-controlled abilities, future-reading took a lot of concentration, and left the oracle quite drained of energy. Rairin, she guessed, would require a lot more sleep than usual, maybe even more than a human. Considering Cyniclons barely even needed sleep in comparison, the fact that Rairin slept more than the average human made her quite an oddity. And she was considered strange among the Cyniclons anyway.

Yume was slipping back between the bookcases when Rairin's little voice called out from behind her.

"She's going to ask to leave."

"Kikuchi?" Yume asked, astonished, turning her gaze back to the workroom. Rairin's black eyes were fixed upon her. She nodded quietly, her spectacles reflecting the light hanging by her pointed ear.

"And...?"

"Well, I said she's going to stay, didn't I?"

Yes, she _had _said that. Though why she would say that Akane would want to leave was beyond Yume. It seemed to serve no real significant purpose. But she wouldn't have said it if it didn't have importance to it. She gazed hopefully at Rairin for a moment, but it became quickly clear that she didn't intend on elaborating, or saying anything else at all, for that matter. Yume's silver eyes lingered for a moment, then she continued through the bookcases.

"Oh," Rairin called again, and she froze for the second time. A smirk had wound itself into the smaller girl's tinkling voice. "Pai-sensei's going to give you a twenty-page thesis assignment on Cyniclon warfare in the nineteenth century next Thursday. You're going to find the books in the fourth aisle of the Nineteenth Century Cyniclon War History section of the library. Just giving you a heads up."

Yume smiled quietly to herself, shut her eyes, and disappeared on the spot.

X

He paced up and down before them, his brow knitted, his hands shoved deep in the pockets of his white pants.

Cramped on the sofa before him, all of them silent and guilt-faced, were Sachi, Sazuki, Umeko, Mika, Emiko and Akane. Sachi stared determinedly at a painting on the wall behind his head. Sazuki and Emiko gazed miserably at the floor. Mika glanced at Umeko, who was still annoyed with her and ignored her gaze. Akane's brown eyes followed the headmaster back and forth, back and forth, wondering what he was going to say.

The silence stretched on into several long minutes. Every now and then he glanced over at them out of the corner of his azure eye, his expression clouding before he continued marching along the carpet, lost in his thoughts.

"A week of in-school suspension," Shirogane decided finally, coming to a stop and turning to face them gravely. Sachi, Umeko and Emiko groaned; Sachi sagged where she sat. He raised his voice to talk over their dismay. "Every morning next week you will all report to me first thing, and you'll sit in the empty room next door and complete the work your classmates will be doing. Your teachers will leave a list of things to be studied, and every day your books will be checked.

"If the work hasn't been completed, your suspension will extend to the following week. So I suggest you get it done on the day. You will not leave the room, even for lunch. I'll make sure some sushi rolls are prepared for you."

He paused, gazing at Tanaka's raised hand as though he wasn't quite sure what it meant.

"Yes, Tanaka?"

"Sir, what about toilet breaks?" she asked. He flushed the faintest shade of pink, turning back to his pacing.

"There will be a female teacher available to escort you to the bathrooms at all times," Shirogane said. "Any other questions?"

There were none. The girls sat in a gloomy silence, none of them looking at him.

"Go back to your dormitories," he said finally. One by one the girls rose from the sofa and traipsed to the door. As Sachi, the first to the handle and most eager to be dismissed, pulled it open, something in their blonde-haired, blue-eyed headmaster snapped.

"Girls."

They froze, turning back to him obediently. Surely he couldn't be planning on dealing out _more _punishment?

"I hope you understand that what you did this afternoon is absolutely against everything we stand for at this school," Shirogane said seriously. Emiko nodded quietly without realising she was doing it. He continued before any of them could speak. "Mews should never, ever attack a fellow human, unless it is for the greater good of our planet and our people. We are protectors of the earth, not warriors."

He gazed around at all of them, watching as his words sunk in. Sazuki shifted uncomfortably, guilt warping her features.

"In light of the situation this afternoon, however," he continued, to their surprise. "I think accolades have been fairly earned."

The expression on the ninth grade girls' faces was absolutely priceless. The shock couldn't have been clearer than if it had been announced that they were being shipped to Africa. They glanced amongst themselves, bewildered.

"The manner in which you handled yourselves in a crisis, and the readiness you showed in defending the honour of yourselves and this academy is nothing short of praise-worthy," Shirogane said, bestowing upon them a small smile. "You've done yourselves, your fellow students, and me, proud."

A beam stretched its way across Sachi and Mika's faces. Umeko and Sazuki looked confused. Emiko just looked downright suspicious. Akane glanced at the others, her mind already fixed on what she planned on doing next.

"You may go," Shirogane said. "Enjoy your weekend. See you first thing Monday morning."

"And after all that praise," Sachi muttered to Sazuki, "I'd hoped he'd just lift the punishment."

"Way to get our hopes up," Sazuki agreed quietly. She turned in surprise when she realised Akane was no longer following them through the door. The shy girl had paused at the doorway, her hand lingering on the handle.

"Kikuchi-chan?" Sazuki asked curiously. "Are you okay?"

Akane nodded.

"... I..." she trailed off, then tried again. "I need to speak to the headmaster."

"Do you want one of us to come with you?" Sachi asked, surprised. Akane shook her head quickly.

"Do you want us to stay and wait?" Mika asked, equally as confused. Again, the auburn-haired girl shook her head.

"Well... okay then..." Sachi trailed off, obviously unhappy about this. Akane reasoned that it was probably just because she was curious to know what she was going to say. "If you're sure..."

Akane nodded, and they reluctantly continued down the corridor without her. Sazuki glanced once over her shoulder, shooting her a small, encouraging smile, and Akane carefully and quietly shut the door behind them.

When she turned back around to face the room, Shirogane was standing quite still, staring at her in faint, amused curiosity.

"How can I help you?" he asked, strolling around one of the armchairs and dropping lightly into it. He gestured to the sofa across the table from his. "Take a seat."

Akane fidgeted nervously as she obediently sat down on the cushions, wondering how to phrase her request. He waited patiently for her to gather her thoughts, his blue eyes fixed on her, unmoving though she couldn't return his gaze.

"... I..." Akane trailed off, blushing. He waited silently.

"I..." she tried again, but she simply couldn't bring herself to say it. She was worried about how he would react; about how her friends would react if they found out what she'd asked of him this evening. But the more she thought about the conclusion she'd come to, the more it seemed to make perfect sense in her mind. Once she'd latched onto the idea she just couldn't get it out of her mind.

"Are you having any trouble?" Shirogane asked, trying to find the prompt that would get her talking. Her constant meek silence was beginning to frustrate him a little, though he knew better than to let it show. He'd dealt with enough females over the years to know how to handle every single kind of them. And getting angry at the shy ones never boded well.

Akane shook her head, wondering to what extent her answer was true. Could she count her strange condition as a trouble? She wasn't entirely sure.

"Do you need extra help with any of your subjects?" Shirogane tried again. Well, yes, she did, in fact, require some assistance, particularly with History and Bio/Genetics, but that wasn't why she was sticking around to talk to him. No, unless she said it herself, they weren't going to get anywhere.

"I..." she began, then steeled her trembling nerves. "I want you to send me back."

"Back?" the headmaster inquired lightly. "Back where?"

"Back... home..." Akane murmured quietly, her cheeks burning with shame. Ryou's eyes widened; he sat forward in his armchair, leaning his elbows on his knees and surveying her in a new, interested light.

"Why do you want to go home?" he asked.

"... I..." Akane wondered how best to word her answer. Finally, she forced her soft gaze up and settled for, "I don't belong here."

"What do you mean?"

She blushed harder and gazed miserably at her tightly-shut knees. Her hands twisted themselves together, wringing themselves in her agony.

"... I am not a... Mew Mew," Akane said gently, flicking her gaze up to his face. He was staring at her, something akin to sympathy in his eyes. She looked away again.

"Do you know this for a fact?" Shirogane asked gently. Akane, unable to respond verbally, nodded.

"Where's your proof, Kikuchi-san?"

"... I don't have any powers."

His heart went out to the weak little girl sitting opposite him. To his surprise, she continued before he had composed a response.

"I can't join in with the others in their Mew classes... I can't transform... I don't understand any of what I'm being taught..." her breath caught sharply in her throat; with an uncomfortable jolt he realised she was about to cry. Shirogane Ryou did not do crying teenage girls.

"... I'm useless, Shirogane-sensei!" Akane cried, and finally she looked up, glimmering beads dripping down her rosy cheeks. Her chocolate eyes searched his face for some sort of consolidation, imploring him to tell her she was wrong, even though she knew she wasn't.

"You're not useless, Kikuchi," Ryou said, watching her hastily wipe away her tears. She sniffled a little, suddenly looking very embarrassed to have burst the way she did. "You just need a little more time to blossom."

She had no idea what he meant. His words didn't make any sense.

"... Shirogane-sensei–"

"Not everyone can be a Mew straight away, Kikuchi-san," he cut across her gently. She clung to his words intently. "Not everyone can just develop an alternate persona overnight. Sometimes, it takes more time for someone's DNA to be completely mixed with their genetic animal's. Sometimes, it takes a longer time for their powers to reveal themselves."

Akane was quiet for a moment, digesting this. Did he mean to say that he thought she was one of these cases, or was he just making excuses for her, because he felt sorry for her?

"... Why–?"

"We're not sure," he said. "No-one really knows why some people take more time to develop than others. It's extremely uncommon, but not entirely unheard of. I wouldn't worry too much just yet, if I were you."

She glanced up at him. There was a gentle, knowing look in his face. A tiny smile twitched at his lips.

"So if that was all you wanted to discuss, Kikuchi, then I think it's safe to say you can return to your dormitory now."

Without really thinking, Akane rose from the sofa. She made it all the way to the door, before pausing again.

"... Shirogane-sensei?"

"Yes, Kikuchi?"

"... How... How long...?"

A knowing look flashed in his blue eyes. "I'm not sure. You'll just have to wait a bit longer and find out."

"... But... But you're sure...?"

He wondered how best to answer that. No, he wasn't completely sure she would ever gain her powers; just because the injection process had been declared successful didn't mean that it had absolutely worked. There could be flaws found all through her strange case, if they deigned to look into it closely. It could easily be that the process hadn't really worked at all, and that her cells hadn't been injected, which would simply mean that he would just have to re-examine his technology.

Or it could be that he'd been entirely wrong about her altogether, although he hadn't ever been wrong about any of his students before. It could be that she didn't have compatible cells at all. But he wasn't about to tell her that. The poor thing seemed to have lost enough hope and faith as it was. It would be better to just wait it out and see if her powers did eventually develop. She had to have more of a chance being in constant proximity to other students like herself.

"No, Kikuchi," Shirogane said eventually, looking her in the eye. She looked pale and tired, and absolutely terrified. "I'm not exactly sure. But I'm confident. And you should be, too. Now, back to your dormitory, before I'm forced to give you detention for wandering the corridors at this time of night."

It was meant to be a joke, but she didn't seem to recognise this fact. Akane squeaked her gratitude for their little meeting and bolted from the room as fast as her legs would take her, her face as white as a sheet. As the door shut behind her, Shirogane sighed, running a hand through his blonde hair.

It seemed that, after all his dealings with adolescent females, he still wasn't completely sure about how to deal with them _entirely _appropriately.

* * *

**I am setting you all a small challenge :)**

**If anyone can tell me where the inspiration came from for either:**

**A) Momoka (as a character, and with her abilities), or  
B) The Storeroom.  
C) This chapter as a whole (think broadly, and relatively - it is something happening AT THE MOMENT, and if you can guess it, it's painfully obvious!!! XD).**

**... then the next chapter of MA will be dedicated to you and your cleverness will be celebrated in the pre-A/N!**

**OR if you can guess all three, then the next chapter of MA will be centred around your entered character. If you don't have one... then you can have the chapter centred around the pre-existing character of your choice :) And I'll chuck in that you can pick something that will happen in the chapter, too. But you have to be brilliant enough to guess BOTH inspirations for that!!! XD**

**Gotta say, people, I LOVE the Cyniclons. When I told you there'd be magic in MA, I SAID I didn't mean hocus-pocus spells! :P I like this so much better XD XD These guys are ridiculously cooler than the Mews - haha!**

**Thanks, as always, for reading. Please review :)**

**Until the next update,**

**Cherrie xx**


	18. A1,P2,S7: Recovery and Redemption

**May 23, 2010.**

**A/N: Greetings, fictioners.**

**I know, right? Is this… is this actually… **_**Mew Academy**_**… with an **_**update**_**? How **_**preposterous**_**! But, dear friends and dedicated readers, your eyes do not deceive you. Yes, this is, at long last, an update for the wonderful world of Mew Academy. You'd better love me for this, because it's been a damn long, **_**hard **_**road to get to the completion of this chapter. XD**

**First off, please allow me a moment to wish a very dear friend of mine a happy birthday. **

**Hey there, Zeph. This one's for you, mate. Readers, today is ZephyrFiction's 20****th**** birthday. (Well, actually, I'm never really sure if it's the 22****nd**** or the 23****rd**** of May, but that all depends on time zones, I guess…). Everyone go wish him a happy birthday, mmkay?**

**Yup. This birthday, Zeph, I decided to reconnect with this story because I know how much you've been driving yourself mad with IT, and how hopeful you've been over the last… well, almost a year D: … since MA's last update, that I'd someday continue writing. I'm so sorry I've been so unreliable with this and with IT. Truly, I am. **

**Reflecting over the past fortnight, I really had to work myself so hard to even manage to churn out this chapter. It was unbelievably difficult. It's taken me **_**two weeks**_** of constant attempts at writing and a _bucket load _of determination to get here. So many times it would have been **_**so**_** much easier to just give up, abandon my attempts and write you something else. ****But I knew you wouldn't like something else as much as this. ****So I shrugged it off and just kept trying. And here we are. Honestly, I can't believe the perseverance paid off. I feel like I've overcome a giant hurdle, or faced an inner demon, or conquered some other significant achievement. LOL!**

**Anyway. Point is: Happy Birthday, Romeo ;) xox**

**To all my other readers: **_**Thank you**_** for continuing to support Mew Academy, from the deepest depths of my heart. Hopefully I can start to repay you all now with long-awaited, much-deserved updates. Thanks for not giving up on us (me + story).**

**Apologies in advance for the characters being OOC at any point; getting in touch with them again was much harder than I thought it would be :S**

**Now read on, and enjoy!**

**Note:**_ "__ENGLISH"_, "JAPANESE".

* * *

**Disclaimer: Atashi ha, Tokyo Mew Mew ga arimasen. (= "I do not have Tokyo Mew Mew" XD;;) Close enough. **

**Dedications...**

**Story for MewCuxie 12. Chapter for ZephyrFiction, and Mika (now known as The 2 crazy Kats-- Mika and M.Z). Happy Birthday, Zeph :) Mika, your loyalty and love for this story just astounds me. Thank you for continuing to beg for updates; your encouragement really spurs me to keep writing. Sorry you had to wait so long for this chapter xx **

* * *

ACT ONE - PART TWO - SCENE SEVEN

* * *

"Uwaaah."

Sachi groaned loudly, dropping her head onto her arms, flopping lazily across her desk. Her blue fringe fell into her face; with a very audible puff, she blew it out of her eyes. Beside her, Sazuki glanced sideways mid-sentence. She put her pen down, tucking a long strand of brown behind her ear.

"Have you finished?" She sounded incredulous.

Sachi snorted. "As if. I'm so _bored._ And hungry."

"Me too," Sazuki agreed, swishing her long brown hair and giving her fingers a well-deserved rest. "I'm getting sick of sitting in here."

"Join the club," Mika growled, snapping her book shut irritably. "And if it weren't for you, _Sachi, I _wouldn't even be here!"

"You fought as much as the rest of us," Sachi snapped back, her voice muffled by her arms. "Don't blame me."

"Get over it, guys," Umeko said loudly, in a firm, no-nonsense voice that quieted the rest immediately. "Face the facts. We're stuck in this stupid room for another two days, and sitting here complaining about it won't make it go any faster. Besides," she added, glancing up at the loudly-ticking clock on the wall above them, "Yume's going to be here any minute to collect our work. Just get it done."

"If you don't finish _again_, Nakamura," Mika threatened, "I'm going to hit you so hard you'll finish the rest of it in advance!"

"Pfft," Sachi retorted childishly. "Whatever, Murakami. Turn around and face the front."

"Don't sass me," Mika warned, her yellow-flecked eyes flashing dangerously. "I had to face Asato-kun today–" She groaned, realising her mistake as Sachi, despite her earlier promise not to, chorused 'Asato-kuuun' , an expression of mocking, giddy girlishness dementing her face.

"Oh my God! _Get over it_!" Mika shrieked. "He's hardly even _speaking_ to me now, anyway, because of this! Getting stuck in here with you lot is so humiliating!"

"Like you haven't landed yourself in detention before," Sachi sniped. "Stop playing the victim, Mika. Besides, you've been doing less work than _me _all week."

"Why, you–!" Umeko had to jump up and grab Mika's arms from behind to stop her from launching across the room at Sachi. Face twisted with fury, she was eased back into her seat, shooting hot glowers of loathing in the blue-haired girl's direction.

"Calm down, Mika."

"Would you all just _shut up_?" Emiko snapped angrily from the back. They all looked over their shoulders, surprised. Tanaka was bent over her books with Akane, pen in hand, clearly having just been interrupted in her explanation of something historical. Akane was glancing shyly at them, blushing, her soft eyes apologetic.

"Sorry, Tanaka-san," Sazuki said, in her gentle, peace-keeping voice. "We'll try to keep it down."

She shot Sachi a warning look and returned to quietly completing her work. Gradually, the others followed suit. Sachi, determined to procrastinate for as long as possible, gazed thoughtfully at Kikuchi. She'd been spending an increasing amount of time with Tanaka lately, and it was starting to bother her. Not just because it was offensive – _she _was Akane's buddy, not snobby, insufferable Emiko – but because she was starting to wonder whether it was because Akane preferred Tanaka's company.

The more she thought about it, the more it made sense; she and Akane were very different people, and she knew she was a particularly outspoken sort of person. There was nothing shy about Nakamura. It would make sense if she intimidated Akane. A jolt of worry shuddered through her stomach. What if Akane _disliked _that she was so outgoing? The girl was far too polite to ever mention it; perhaps this was her way of trying to _show _it…

An unhappy frown creasing her forehead, Sachi tried not to feel hurt and reluctantly committed herself to scrawling half-hearted responses to their set history questions.

X

Aside from their detentions, the girls also had to endure gruelling punishments dealt by Yume, who seemed to think Shirogane's hellish confinement wasn't taxing enough on them. On top of shooting them all dark, displeased looks whenever she heard their voices – which Akane found horrible enough; she'd never disappointed anybody so much in her entire life and felt subsequently unhappy with herself – she loaded them up with as many awful chores as she possibly could.

On their first day of detention, the girls trooped back from their long detainment and were promptly instructed to thoroughly clean – not tidy, _clean _– both dormitories. This involved pulling everything up off the floor and moving all the heavy furniture around so they could vacuum the carpet. Marks that wouldn't come out with the vacuum had to be scrubbed with a special treatment, which absolutely stank and made the unlucky girl's eyes water. Eerie Momoka, who seemed to find their penance amusing, sat around like they were a form of entertainment, occasionally offering tissues to Sachi, whose cheeks became stained with flowing rivers of tears as she angrily scratched at the stained carpet.

Some of the other girls took pity on them, too. Madar, when she wasn't caught up in student body meetings and extra study classes, helped teach the less-able girls (Emiko, Sachi and Mika) how to properly clean. She showed them which product to use when cleaning the mirrors in the bathroom, which conditioner to mop the tiles with, and which detergent was best at removing stains from material. Sazuki and Umeko found this particular lesson extremely useful; it was their job to take down the curtains, beat out the many years' of collected dust, and try to wash them. Sazuki gawked at the state of them; somehow, they'd managed to almost destroy the poor things. There were pen and ink marks everywhere, frayed seams, scorch marks here and there, and little tears and holes all over the place.

She wondered if it wouldn't be more sensible to just pool their grocery money and buy some new ones.

The only one of them who didn't grumble at all was Akane. Cleaning was not an issue for her, and she'd had plenty of practise at it. She silently wet-washed the window sills and cleaned the dorm windows, gazing contentedly out over the vast grounds. And she actually _enjoyed _cleaning out the kitchenette. She got down on her hands and knees and emptied the contents of the cupboards onto the linoleum, carefully wiping the interior and clearing away the cobwebs. Then she cleaned, dried and put away all the utensils, organising them so there was a neat order in the cupboard.

But she had the most fun cleaning out the refrigerator.

As Emiko, her curly dark ringlets frizzy and her face flushed, scrubbed at the grease marks on the walls, she glanced over and caught Akane humming quietly to herself as she sorted through the contents of the fridge. She paused for a moment, watching in quiet astonishment as Kikuchi happily washed all the drawers and re-organised it all, blissfully ignorant of her audience.

The moment was broken when kind-hearted Onchou poked her head around the door, offering them a tea break, and Akane glanced around, startled, immediately silent again.

They were worked hard those first two days, and by the time Wednesday afternoon came around, everybody – bar Akane – had complained at least twice of sore arms, wrists, backs or necks. Sachi and Mika seemed to have copped it the worst; they'd spent the last two days on their knees, scrubbing the floors. Sazuki had witnessed Sachi's back cracking loudly when she was finally allowed to get up. She knew for a fact that, for once, there was no exaggeration in their complaining.

X

The only one of them who managed to escape extra punishment that week was Kiseki, who saw her forced recovery in the medical ward as a kind of imprisonment. She wasn't happy. Even her ringlets seemed miserable, hanging limply down her back.

"I wanna get out of here!" she whined, when the girls went to visit her after detention. "I'm sick of this bed. I'm sick of not being allowed to get up and walk around! I'm sick of being alone all the time! I want out!"

"Calm down, Kiseki," Sazuki said gently, making herself comfortable at the foot of the monkey Mew's bed. "You'll be out of here soon enough. They're just doing what's best for you."

"I feel fine," Kiseki replied, pouting. She blew a wayward ringlet out of her face with a frustrated huff. "My head doesn't even hurt anymore."

"You're incredibly lucky, did you know that?" Sachi said, uncharacteristically serious, for once. "You could've been killed."

"Yeah, I know," Kiseki replied, rolling her emerald eyes. "Everyone keeps telling me that."

"Because it's true!" Sazuki spluttered. "That rock hit you so hard, it's a wonder it didn't snap your neck."

"But it _didn't_," Kiseki pointed out, crossing her arms. "And I'm fine. So I should be able to come back to class now."

"Kiseki, you don't even _like _class," Sachi replied, pulling a face.

Kiseki grinned. "But I like the people. And the teachers. And class is fun when you don't do any work!"

Sazuki sighed heavily. From her seat by the window, Akane watched them interacting, a small smile toying with her lips. She turned her gaze to the sky outside, as she often did. Personally, she felt sorry for Kiseki, being cooped up in here like a bird in a cage. The girl must have been going slowly insane; she reminded Akane of an energetic pony tethered in a barn stall, when all it wanted was to run in the fields outside. She empathised with Kiseki's desire to leave.

"I miss my skates," Kiseki said sadly. Akane glanced at her, her heart aching sympathetically.

That night, when they returned, Yume was waiting stoically for them, standing by the dark window with her slender arms crossed delicately. She couldn't forbid them from visiting their friend in rehabilitation – she wasn't _that _heartless – but it did annoy her when they took their time in returning.

"Tonight," she greeted them coolly, when they all trooped in, chattering happily. They immediately fell silent, the smiles dropping from their faces. She regarded them all with cold, unflinching steel eyes. "You are to remove all the bedding and wash it all. Hurry now before the laundry becomes busy."

Without waiting for a response, she closed her eyes, summoning the familiar process of teleportation. She had much more important things to worry about than her disobedient minors. And she wasn't concerned about them not completing the job; they were all far too terrified of her by now to be lazy.

"Yes, your majesty," Sachi groaned, with a sarcastic eye roll. With an exhausted groan, she collapsed on her bunk. "I don't think I can take much more of this slavery. She's working us to the bone."

"Okay, so let's consider your other option," Tanaka said snidely, propping her hands on her hips. "You _don't _do it, and you tick her off even more. I'd imagine the punishment for not undertaking punishment is much worse than a few detentions."

Sachi merely moaned into her pillows in response.

"Do you want some help stripping all the sheets?" Onchou asked, interrupting politely from the desk, where she was studying Bio/Genetics. "It'll make the job much faster."

"Thanks," Sazuki replied, with an appreciative smile. "But it's not your penance to work off. And there are enough of us – we're fine."

"Yeah," Emiko said loudly, irritated by Sachi's motionless form on the bed. "Let's get started straight away – it'll be done much quicker."

With her deep blue eyes flashing, she leaned down and fiercely ripped the duvet from underneath Sachi, who rolled straight off the side of the bed with a yelp. She sat up, rubbing her head, her face wrinkled with anger.

"What the hell, Tanaka?"

Smirking in satisfaction, Emiko unbuttoned the duvet cover and pulled it off the doona. "Well, we had to start _somewhere_."

Sachi clambered to her feet, her hair askew, her fists balled at her sides. She gritted her teeth; Akane could easily imagine the fire burning in her eyes. It looked like she would like nothing more than to rip Emiko's little throat out. Luckily, Sazuki stepped in to pacify the situation before she went completely nuts and tackled the raven-haired girl.

"Why don't you take it out on the pillows over here, instead," she suggested, leading a fuming Sachi to the other side of the dorm.

Gradually, the others – groaning and grumbling like Sachi – got to work stripping all the beds. By the time they were done, the laundry basket was overflowing with dirty linen; Umeko, Sazuki and Akane had to carry extra armloads down as Mika and Sachi wheeled the basket. In Emiko's arms was a bag containing all the laundry powder and detergent.

Luckily for the girls, the laundrette was practically empty. They set themselves up beside four washing machines, which they adjusted the settings of and began to load. Mika and Umeko talked quietly, excluding the others from their private conversation, as usual. Sazuki and Akane worked together, sorting colours from whites. Sachi snatched the wash powder from Emiko and began angrily tossing cupfuls into one of the machines, muttering darkly to herself.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Sazuki suddenly said loudly, putting down the pillow cases she was holding. "Too much powder, Sachi – way too much!"

"Whatever." Sachi shrugged carelessly. "At least it'll get a good wash."

"You idiot," Emiko muttered snidely under her breath. Sachi shot a hot glower at her, raising her hand – probably to belt her face. Sazuki suddenly gasped, her eyes fixed on the box in Sachi's hand.

"Nakamura," she said, her voice filled with dread. Akane glanced at her worriedly. "You didn't… you didn't use that in the washing machine, did you?"

"Yeah, so what?" Sachi snapped, looking at the box, too.

"Turn the machine off!" Sazuki cried desperately, but, naturally, it was already too late. Volumes of frothy, soapy bubbles were foaming around the lid of the machine, and when an alarmed Sachi threw it open, cascades of suds poured out like a volcanic eruption.

Sazuki squealed.

"That was _dishwashing powder, _you numbskull!" she shrieked, flapping her arms uselessly in her panic and trying – stupidly – to scoop the ever-growing mountain of bubbles back into the machine, which was now literally swallowed by the manifestation.

"Well how was I supposed to know?" Sachi wailed back, scooping waist-high suds out of the way as she waded towards the socket. "I just took whatever Tanaka handed to me!"

She turned accusing eyes to Emiko, who blushed furiously. "I didn't realise!"

"Jesus Christ!" Umeko exclaimed, finally catching sight of the commotion going on behind her conversation with Mika. "What did you guys do?"

"It's Tanaka's fault!" Sachi bellowed, finally managing to reach through the beast-like soap suds to flick the power off at the wall. The washing machine fell silent, though the bubbles still spewed from its round mouth like a waterfall.

"How the hell do you always manage to screw up the simplest of jobs?" Umeko groaned, flapping her hand to expel the little clump of bubbles that was trying to cling determinedly to her fingers. "We're going to get in so much trouble for this."

Surprisingly, though, the seniors' reactions were not at all what they were nervously anticipating.

Momoka took one look at the mess and roared with laughter. Madar tried to stem her giggles by pressing her long, dark fingers to her mouth, her black eyes twinkling. Even Rin discarded her usual sour demeanour to grin hugely at the disaster, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose. But the most astonishing was Yume, who they'd thought for sure would be scathing in her disappointment of yet _another _of their failures. But she just stood in the doorway for a long moment, her silvery eyes wide, her mouth dropped to form a tiny 'o' of shock, then fought a small smile as she ordered them all out so the janitor could fix the mess.

Akane wondered whether it was because her fellow seniors saw the light in the disaster that she was so relaxed about it. She couldn't imagine Yume would have been so forgiving if it had been just her trying to handle their calamity. Or perhaps she was realising, as Akane was, that it didn't matter where the girls were or what they were doing – if they were together, disaster was _bound _to follow. They just couldn't help themselves. There really wasn't any use in berating them for every single catastrophe – it was just a waste of breath, in the end.

X

It was Friday morning by the time Kiseki was finally released from the hospital ward. The girls were locking dorm seventeen in preparation for their last, long day of detention when her gleeful, giggling voice echoed up the corridor to them. A few seconds later, a humanoid bowling ball crashed into them, knocking them all down like bowling pins. Kiseki, grinning hugely, extracted herself from the pile of girls, wrestling her strawberry-blonde curls out of her face.

"I got my skates back!" she announced joyously. "Huzzah!"

"I think I'm sitting on one of them," Sachi groaned in response.

Needless to say, it was a considerably merrier bunch of girls who traipsed out of their final period of detention, their spirits higher than they had been all week. Sachi, especially, was completely back to her ever-cheerful self, bouncing along happily as they returned to the dorms.

"We're free!" she sang, smiling like she'd swallowed a rainbow.

"Don't speak too soon," Emiko warned, a frown of dislike etching her features. "You're getting everyone's hopes up."

"We still have to face Yume," Sazuki agreed soberly.

"Naw, she'll let us off," Sachi replied confidently. "Our detention's over now; we're off the hook. We're officially not her slaves anymore!"

Emiko said nothing to that, but rolled her eyes. Akane, walking along silently beside Sazuki, couldn't help but quietly agree with the raven-haired girl. Knowing Yume, she'd make the most of their last evenings under her command.

And she did.

"Your detention may be over," she said, the moment they shut the dormitory door behind them, "but your punishment is not."

Sachi groaned audibly, trying to pretend she couldn't see Emiko smirking victoriously in the corner of her vision. Yume turned stony silver eyes to her, and she promptly fell silent, straightening her posture reflexively.

"Tonight," Yume informed them, like an army general addressing his troops, "since the dormitories have been completed, you are to clean the girls' bathrooms at the hot springs."

"What?" Sachi exploded, amongst several gasps of dismay or shock. Yume surveyed them all coolly until they quieted down.

"You may have fulfilled penance enough in Shirogane-sensei's eyes," she said. "However, you disgraced your seniors, your peers, and myself, and damaged the reputations of your classmates. In my eyes, and in the eyes of my colleagues, you have not yet earned back our respect, or earned the right to walk as equals among your fellow students."

The girls were stunned silent. Mika shifted one foot uncomfortably. Akane felt like her soul was burning with shame. Her guilt radiated from her red cheeks.

"So, until you have proven yourselves to be mature, responsible adolescents with good work ethic, discipline and respect, you will carry out whatever task I ask of you, quickly, efficiently, and with dignity. Are there any questions?"

She stared evenly at Sachi, simply _daring _her to open her big mouth and complain.

Sachi, for once, stayed wisely silent.

Yume nodded once, shortly. "Good. You may go."

They moved quickly and wordlessly around the dorm, changing out of their uniforms and into their gym gear (as Onchou suggested), and meeting out in the hallway, where the atmosphere was significantly subdued. Hardly glancing at one another, the girls made their way down to the hot springs.

"Okay, don't you think she's laying it on a bit thick?" Sachi finally burst, her expression irritated. Sazuki turned to her from the janitor's closet between the bathrooms, handing her a plastic bucket and a dilapidated mop.

"Well," she replied fairly, "we _did _disgrace the school."

"You're kidding, right?" Sachi spluttered. "We _defended our honour._ I don't see how that means we should be eternally punished, or whatever."

"For once," Mika said, filling her bucket with warm water, "I agree with you. It's not fair."

"Damn straight!" Sachi replied, hands on hips.

"That may be so," Emiko said, pushing open the door to the bathroom. "But it's not going to get us out of detention."

Without a backward glance, she walked inside. The door swung shut behind her.

"Tanaka's right," Sazuki agreed. "We may as well just put up with it until Yume's satisfied."

"What if she's _never _satisfied?" Sachi pointed out, frowning unhappily. "We could be slaves forever, and Shirogane'll have to sack the janitor. There'll be nothing for him to _do_ anymore. What's the poor guy gonna do with the rest of his life?"

"Come on, Sachi," Sazuki sighed with finality. She filled her bucket, Kiseki's and Akane's with warm water and cleaning solvent and, still grumbling, Sachi reluctantly followed them into the bathroom.

It was astonishing, Akane thought to herself, as she squeezed out her sponge and dirty water rained into her bucket, how misguidingly clean a shower could appear, when really, it was absolutely filthy. She reached up and carefully scrubbed at the mortar between the off-white tiles, only noticing now, with her face right up close to the wall, that it had probably once been white, too. She'd always thought the mortar was purposefully brown in colour. As little specks of grime wiped away on the sponge, she couldn't help being mildly horrified.

Of course, when she realised how dirty the showers were, she started noticing how bad everything _else _was, too. But this made her unpleasantly nauseous, so she quickly stopped closely examining the tiles and focused on robotically scrubbing instead.

"Look what I found!" Kiseki called, her voice echoing around the large room. Several people stopped what they were doing to look around obediently. The small girl was standing with one hand on her hip. From the extended pointer of the other was suspended a frilly red bra.

"Put that down, Kiseki," Sachi laughed. "You might get herpes."

"Oh, shut up, Nakamura," Emiko snapped from her corner, when she caught Kiseki's alarmed expression. "She's just kidding, Sato."

"I wonder how many things get left behind in here," Sazuki commented thoughtfully. "Probably a lot, I'd imagine."

It then became an unspoken competition to see who could find the most (or most interesting) lost items. Even Akane was intrigued when Mika and Kiseki showed each other their finds – Mika's a floral face washer, Kiseki's a polka-dot ribbon. She watched the girls scouring the toilets and showers like sniffer-dogs, and felt a sudden desire to join in.

But they hadn't finished cleaning yet. It didn't feel right to have fun while their job was incomplete.

"I found a hairbrush!" Sachi called.

"I've got a _tooth_brush," Sazuki replied, sounding a little disgusted. "_Someone_ in the academy has rotten teeth…"

"I've found a bottle of shampoo," Mika added. "I don't even think it's been opened."

"Saved yourself some money there," Umeko laughed, joining in, but pretending she wasn't very interested. "Sadly, this conditioner's empty."

"Ooh, look!" Kiseki cried, dashing in. In her hands was a scrap of purple material. They all blinked silently at her triumphant face.

"How come Sato keeps finding people's _clothes_?" Umeko finally asked. "It's a bit creepy."

"Kiseki, go give that bikini top back to whichever poor girl you stole it from," Mika replied, then laughed when Kiseki protested earnestly that she _didn't _steal it. By this stage, Akane was finishing up the last shower stall, and her back was starting to ache from bending down so much. At least, she thought, you could see a difference after all her hard work.

"Mine!" a voice declared in a triumphant shout, at the same time as another cried, "Hey!"

Raised voices argued in a jumble of echoing shouts, confusing everyone else in the bathroom. Finally, Sazuki managed to quieten everything, and they all worked out that Sachi and Emiko seemed to have found something at the same time. Emiko was holding the prized jewel in her small hands; it was a pair of goggles in a clear case.

"I found them first!" Sachi protested, scowling.

"Nice try," Emiko sneered. "You can't always be the hero, Nakamura."

"Who the heck wears _goggles _in a hot spring?" Mika wondered presently, as the other two started up another fierce debate. Umeko shrugged, deciding not to try and get involved in their dispute this time. It was just too exhausting. While Sazuki tried desperately to restore order, Kiseki ran around with the bikini held over her head like a flag, and Sachi and Emiko shouted in each others' faces, Akane carefully carried her full bucket back outside and emptied the dirty, soapy water down the drain. Then she went to put the bucket and sponge back.

She returned right at the priceless moment Sachi finally snapped and with an angry shout of, "I hate you!", yanked a soaking sponge out of the nearest bucket and threw it at Emiko.

Her aim was comically true.

Emiko shrieked in fury, dirty, lukewarm water dripping from her curls, and lunged for another bucket.

Within seconds, sponges were flying in all directions. The girls' squeals, shouts and laughs ricocheted off the tiled walls. Water slopped all over the place and suddenly everyone was slipping over and sliding on their butts as the floor became as slick as ice. Sachi grabbed Emiko in a headlock, squeezing her sponge down her back. In response, Emiko splashed the bucket's contents onto Sachi's chest.

Both screaming, they broke apart to glare furiously at each other. After only a split second, history repeated itself, and Akane watched, with an enormous feeling of déjà vu, as Emiko threw herself at Sachi, tackling her to the floor.

"Guys, st–!" Sazuki coughed and spluttered, spitting soapy water out of her mouth. Water dripped from her chin from the sudden interrupting attack, and she turned, unimpressed to Kiseki, who was bouncing excitedly on the balls of her feet. "Really, Kiseki? Did you have to do that?"

Giggling, Kiseki took off like a rocket, dashing off to stalk and assault an unsuspecting Mika.

"Stop it!" Sazuki cried, turning back to the brawling girls. "You're going to hurt each other!"

"Good!" They both growled in unison.

"Please!" Sazuki wailed, flapping her hands uselessly in her despair.

"Stay–out–of–OW!" Sachi cried, as Emiko yanked hard on one of her pigtails. Sachi promptly sank her teeth into her arm for revenge.

Emiko shrieked. "_Get off me_!"

"Sachi! Tanaka-san! Please stop this!" Sazuki had to raise her voice to be heard over them. "I don't want to have to get Yume and Momoka!"

They appeared not to have heard.

In the door way, her eyes wide with shock, Akane forced herself to recover. If they didn't do something now, the seniors would get involved, and then they'd be in even more trouble. The bathroom looked even messier now than when they'd started. She thought for a moment, then remembered the object in her hands, and, praying it would be enough of a distraction, walked to the middle of the room.

She put it down on the bench and cleared her throat as loudly as she could. Naturally, absolutely nobody heard her.

She chewed her lip, ducking to avoid an airborne sponge, and sighed a little to herself.

"E… Excuse me…" Even the vent in the roof, which was humming quietly to itself, was louder than her. Akane took a deep, steadying breath. "Excuse me!"

Suddenly, everyone was silent. They all looked at her, shocked – even Sachi and Emiko. A pin could've dropped.

Blushing furiously and apologetically, her hands clasped modestly, Akane peered shyly around at them all and asked simply, in her soft, uncertain voice, "Do I win?"

Umeko was the first to recover. She noticed the tub on the bench, labelled very clearly, 'Lost Property', and the overflowing contents, and a grin lit up her face.

"Well," she said, fighting laughter. "What do you know? Looks like Kikuchi beat us all."

Just like that, the mayhem was calmed, the tension was broken, and order was restored. They all stood around, laughing and dripping like they'd all just been swimming, exhausted from all the energy used in their water-fight. Sazuki pulled Akane into a warm hug.

"You," she said, beaming, her long brown hair messy and tangled, "are amazing."

After that, Sachi and Emiko cleaned themselves up, both avoiding looking at each other as much as possible and looking a little ashamed of themselves. Then they all set about to clean up all over again, working together to mop all the water up off the floor. It was a tired, bedraggled group of girls who finally dragged themselves – much later than expected – through the dorm door.

"Finished?" Onchou greeted with a friendly smile.

"Yeah," Sachi replied tiredly. "We're done."

She glanced at Sazuki, and a secretive smile was shared among their small group. Without saying anything else, they all returned to their respective halves of the dorm and started preparing for bed. Yume, extremely suspicious of the lot of them, eyed them and said nothing.

She didn't even want to know what had happened tonight.

X

Before Akane even knew it, September had drawn to a close and October was rolling around. With the beginning of the new month came cooler mornings and darker evenings; summer was melting gradually into fall. Sachi was not a fan of this natural phenomenon.

"No-o-o," she wailed one morning, as Akane and Sazuki tried to coax her out of bed. "It's too _co-o-o-old._"

"It's not even winter yet, Sachi," Sazuki said, pulling a face and flipping her long hair impatiently. "Suck it up and get up, or we'll be late."

The academy was buzzing with activity and life. All of their subjects began bombing them with tests and assignments, and the girls often found themselves sitting up well after sunset, scribbling conclusions to essays by the flickering light of the lanterns on the desks, or bent over thick library books, searching anxiously for the information needed to finish their project.

Bio/Genetics and History hit them the hardest with their heavy workloads, but Math and English peppered them with routine tests every two weeks, which wasn't enough for them to slack off. Two weeks was just enough time to start preparing for the next test.

Akane had never churned out so many essays in her entire life. She worked herself to the bone, keeping just on top of her workload despite Emiko's dedicated assistance with her learning, and Sazuki's encouragement of the study sessions after class. It seemed that whenever she finally completed one assignment, another one would magically appear to take its place on her to-do list.

And she refused to be discouraged by her very first set of results, which came back with a D for History, two Cs for English and Bio/Genetics, and a B for Math.

"Don't stress," Emiko advised, glancing over her History paper. "You're still behind, remember? You'll be fine when we get you up to speed."

Their special study sessions continued, three times a week, until Akane felt less overwhelmed by the enormous lifetime of history she'd been oblivious to the existence of, and more like she finally understood it. Emiko beamed proudly and victoriously when, a month after their sessions had started, Akane produced a B-plus for her most recent test.

"See?" Emiko said, smiling. "I told you you'd get it eventually."

The more she worked, the more her other subjects improved as well. Eventually she even reached the point where, in one round of tests, she reaped a B for English, two B-plusses for History and Bio/Genetics, and an A for Math. It was also the first week she got a mark over C-minus for Theory. When she showed Emiko her exciting new C-plus, wondering whether she should be pleased or not, Emiko replied, after a moment of consideration, "Well, a C-plus is still an improvement."

Only in Hospitality did Akane really excel without strenuous amounts of effort. It was also the only class she thoroughly enjoyed attending. Her mood in Akasaka-sensei's classroom was always calm and happy; it was her escape class – her _favourite _class. She even got used to Yamamata Yaomi, the insufferably chattery school paper reporter, who remained more interested in quizzing her about her personal life than actually attempting the set recipes. Eventually, she almost found herself comfortable in Yaomi's unnerving presence.

Almost.

The worst class, by far, was Practical, which Akane didn't think she'd ever enjoy. When it became clear after the first few weeks that she wasn't about to mysteriously give birth to her still-missing powers, Kisshu-sensei spared her the routine torment of standing amongst the others and watching them all transform to tackle Chimera Anima. Instead, he let her sit on the bleachers in her school uniform, taking notes and labelling diagrams – watching instead of participating. This didn't bother Akane at all. In fact, it suited her _more _than fine. At least this way she wasn't subject to their inquisitive glances and gossipy whispers all the time. But she still felt isolated and inadequate, sitting by herself lesson after lesson, watching on enviously.

On top of the general stresses of academy life and studies, the teachers began to hint in their classes at the possibilities of studying abroad, something that Akane didn't understand the concept of.

"What they mean," Sachi said as they filtered out into the corridor with the rest of their class after Japanese, stretching their numb legs after an hour of sitting on Aizawa-sensei's uncomfortable little cushions, "is going to another school to go to class."

She looked at Akane, hoping she'd understood, and sighed a little at the blank look she received.

"So, say for example, you wanted to improve your English," Sazuki butted in, coming to the blue-haired girl's rescue. "The best way to do that is to practise your English with native English-speakers, right?"

Akane nodded mutely, blinking as she tried to work it out in her head.

"So," Sazuki continued, "they let you go to a country like England or America to go to school there for a while. That way, you can practise your English, and keep up with your studies at the same time. They call it an exchange."

In fact, the word 'exchange' seemed to be thrown around a lot, Akane noticed. Especially among the teachers, who could often be discovered having conversations about 'sister schools' and 'foreign students' between periods. It was all extremely confusing and mysterious, until one day, an announcement blared over the PA system, interrupting their Theory class. Fujiwara-sensei paused mid-sentence, shooting the speaker a displeased glance, one long-nailed hand poised on her perfect hip.

"Attention, teachers and students…" The main receptionist's aged voice crackled a little over transmission. "There will be a meeting held at midday today in the auditorium. Attendance by all staff and students is mandatory." She repeated the message again, then there was a beep, and the speaker went quiet again. As Fujiwara-sensei picked up the threads of the lesson, the students glanced between each other, wearing identical expressions of curiosity.

The whispered gossip about the spontaneous assembly spread like wildfire for the rest of the morning, so that, when they were all finally released from their eleven o'clock classes and making their way towards the auditorium, the speculation was almost static with excitement and anticipation. The auditorium, a huge hall with rows and rows of seats arching away from a wide stage with heavy black drapes, buzzed with energy and several hundred enthusiastic conversations.

Akane filed into a row with the rest of her class, making herself comfortable on a cherry-pink cushioned seat and gazing around in wonder, overwhelmed by the sheer monstrosity of the theatre-like room. High above them was a spider-web-like mess of beams and electrical wires, dotted here and there with big stage lights. Behind and above them, protruding over the few back rows of seats, was a huge indoor balcony, which housed another good twenty rows or so.

"I wonder what this is about," Sazuki commented conversationally, dragging her attention back down from the rafters.

"Beats me," Sachi said, shrugging. "As far as I'm concerned, we're getting out of Bio/Genetics, so I'm happy enough."

Sazuki rolled her eyes. At the same time, Shirogane strode up onto the stage, his blonde hair shining under the bright stage lights. He took his place behind a lectern with a silky pink sheet bearing the academy's crest.

"Welcome, everyone," he said into the microphone, and quietness rippled through his audience. Everyone's attention turned to him. He gazed out across a sea of curious eyes.

"We apologise for the cancellation of this period's classes–" A low chuckle hummed through the crowd like a ripple; a small, wry smile toyed with the corners of his lips before he continued. "But we felt it appropriate to call this assembly."

He cleared his throat; attention piqued. No-one said a word. "We have decided that, over the next few months, Mew Academy will participate in an exchange program with one of our sister schools in America."

At this, excited murmurs swept through the student body. He cleared his throat again, sternly, waiting for silence. "We've decided that selected students who show promise will be sent in groups to study at the Mew Institute in Albany, in New York state, America. The students will participate in standard classes such as Math and English, but will also have the chance to study the speciality classes of the institute."

This time, he let them chatter excitedly for a few minutes. How could he berate them for being enthralled at the possibility of going overseas to interact with students like themselves? While they speculated eagerly, he cast his mind deep into the ravines of his memory, taking himself back to his own teen years. If there had been a chance back then, Ichigo and the others would have _died _for the opportunity to meet others like them. Of course, at the time they were the only ones of their kind. With the growing spread of Mew genes in the modern world, why _wouldn't _he let his students interact with other Mews-in-training?

"The exchange program will begin soon," he promised them, snapping himself back to present time. "Teachers will begin the selection process as of next week's classes. Work hard and push yourselves to the best of your abilities, and taking part in this program shouldn't be difficult for you. However–" The students gazed attentively up at him. "Should you be selected, you will be expected to uphold the honour and reputation of our school. You are not only representing yourselves; you are representing this academy, and everything we promote as an educational institute."

Akane could have sworn that as he said this, his eyes focused on the small section of the audience which sat the ninth grade girls. Butterflies danced, without warning, in her stomach.

"We aren't entirely sure when the exchange program will officially begin," Shirogane went on, his gaze moving once more to encompass all of his students. "We have confirmation that over the next few weeks we can expect a visit from the first lot of American students. Unfortunately, the exact date of their arrival is indefinite. As of tomorrow, all the empty dormitories will be cleared out and refurnished to provide adequate accommodation for our guests.

"One last thing before you return to your classes," Shirogane said. "We will be selecting the most appropriate students from each grade to act as a buddy for an exchange student. I urge every one of you to put your best foot forward. This is an excellent opportunity, and I have faith that any one of our students would be an excellent host for an international visitor. Their Japanese will most likely not be strong, so it is also a chance for you to improve your English skills. I expect all of you to exercise empathy with our guests, and to treat them as you would hope to be treated if you were in their position."

His words lingered in the air, their heavy meaning falling upon the students. In her seat, Akane's nerves grew, and she found comfort in the thought that she could confidently believe she would not have to worry about playing host to a non-Japanese-speaking student. She highly doubted she'd make an 'appropriate' buddy for somebody who had never visited the Mew Academy before. She still didn't know her way around the grounds herself!

"That is all for today's assembly," Shirogane-sensei said. "Please return now to your respective classes."

X

For the entire following week, all anyone talked about was the upcoming student exchange. It was on everybody's lips – teachers and students alike – and no matter where you went, the chatter echoing down the corridors and sweeping around the classrooms was always centred on when, exactly, their prospective guests would be arriving. Everybody was very excited.

"To be honest," Sachi said, yanking her arms through her blazer sleeves about a week and a half later, her hair all over the place. She stifled a huge yawn. "The chances of us actually being able to meet or talk to these students is pretty low. Think how many of us there are, and how many of them there will be."

"Can we talk about exchange ratios later?" Sazuki begged, fidgeting nervously by the door as she waited with Kiseki for Sachi to finish getting ready. "We're already five minutes late. The bell rang _ages _ago."

"Oh, whatever," Sachi tossed carelessly over her shoulder. "What's Taruto gonna do? Stick us in detention?"

"Well, yes!" Sazuki burst irritably. "Maybe! And be more respectful, Sachi!"

"That's Sachi-_san _to you, miss _Respectful_," Sachi retorted, sticking her tongue out playfully. She tossed her hair up into its usual pigtails, tying her ribbons into careful bows. Behind her, Akane efficiently packed her friend's bag with her books for the day, reading off Sachi's tattered timetable. She zipped the bag shut, quickly re-made Sachi's bed, and went to the wardrobe to dig out one of Sachi's many scarves. Wordlessly, she reached up and wound it around her friend's neck from behind her.

Sachi finished perfecting her ribbons. "Done. Thanks, Akane."

She grinned appreciatively at the shier girl -- who promptly blushed -- and turned to the others. "Okay, let's go."

They were ushered out into the corridor by an impatient Sazuki, who quickly locked the door and shooed them all down to the elevators.

"Hold your horses!" Sachi laughed, as Sazuki physically steered her into the lift. "Relax, would you?"

"We're _still _late," Sazuki reminded her, a little testily. Akane had noticed lately that she seemed a little more stressed out and edgy than usual; all the tests and assignments were taking their toll on the overly scrupulous student. She'd overheard her telling Kiseki a few days before that, coupled with gymnastics practise almost daily, her coursework was getting to be too much; she wasn't sleeping very well.

"Sazuki, whether we walk or run will only determine whether we're seven minutes late or eight," Sachi replied, as the lift _dinged_ and the doors slid open. "So let's conserve energy, people. Advocate for the betterment of the environment right here."

"Don't you take _anything _seriously?" Sazuki replied, almost exasperatedly. She strode off huffily, her bag swinging from her shoulder. Sachi exchanged an astonished look with Kiseki, then glanced at Akane, who shrugged gently.

Suddenly, an exclamation up ahead echoed back, followed by lots of voices talking at once. The girls followed the sounds across the bridge and into the corridor, where they stumbled upon a most obscure scene.

Gathered in the hall were four people. The first, who had apparently been knocked to the floor, was Sazuki. The other three were completely unfamiliar. And, perhaps more importantly, they were not Japanese_. _

"Who're they?" Kiseki whispered curiously, emerald eyes huge. The strangers stared back at them. Two were male; one seemed midway through attempting to help Sazuki up. The other was very short, and very round. The girl with them was a very petite brunette with pretty eyes.

Akane and Kiseki glanced at each other. Neither of their English was anywhere _near_ being up to scratch.

"_Hello_," Sachi said in English, trying it on for size.

Immediately, the taller of the boys started babbling away at them in fast, fluid English. Sachi blushed furiously, waving her hands apologetically. "_No… speaku_!"

"_Ah, shit_," the other boy said. Akane giggled. She'd listened to Sachi and Sazuki looking up English swear phrases one lesson, and recognised it now. She sobered quickly, catching Sazuki's bewildered expression and blushing faintly. The bunch of teenagers looked at each other helplessly, entirely unable to communicate with each other.

The Westerners turned to each other, conversing rapidly in English, their faces anxious.

"What do we do now?" Sachi asked. Sazuki straightened her skirt, brushing it down and flipping her hair over her shoulder. She propped her hands on her hips, surveying the newcomers musingly.

"Well they're clearly lost," she decided. "So we just have to find someone who can communicate with them better than us."

"Why don't you try _your _English?" Sachi asked, blowing her fringe out of her face. "It's gotta be better than mine."

"That wasn't too bad, actually," Sazuki complimented. "Just try to make your 'L'-sound more smooth–"

"Mayday!" Kiseki interrupted. "The weird white people are moving!"

"Wait!" Sachi cried in Japanese.

"That wasn't English!" Kiseki informed her, giggling.

"_Ex-cuse me_!" Sazuki called, switching tongues. The three stumbled to a stop, turning back in surprise. Sazuki thought for a moment, licked her lips and said, "_We will… help you… find English speaker_." She flapped her hands uselessly, frustrated that her mental translator was failing on her in a time of need, and nodded at them encouragingly. "_Come now_!"

The girl sighed, visibly relieved, and stepped forward. She clasped a startled Sazuki's hands in her own, smiled and said, in a very sweet voice, a very strange, thick accent, and terribly mispronounced Japanese, "A-ri-ga-toe."

Sachi and Kiseki roared with laughter. They couldn't help it.

Sazuki shot them a reproachful look and turned back to the smaller girl. "_My name… Sazuki_."

The girl smiled her understanding and replied with a name none of them had ever heard of before. Sachi attempted to repeat it. "_Bu-ri-ji-e-to_?"

The small girl's smile faltered a little, but she nodded, very obviously confused.

Sachi pointed to herself. "_Sachi._" Then she pointed to Kiseki. "_Kiseki._"

"Why don't you let me handle the introductions?" Sazuki offered with a nervous laugh. She turned to the faintly blushing Akane. "_This–is–Akane_."

The Americans gazed at them like they were aliens, with a mixture of curiosity and awe on their faces. Finally, the small, chubby guy pointed to himself and said, "_Matt_." Then he jerked his thumb at the taller, geekier guy. "_Sean_."

"That's a weird name," Sachi commented to Kiseki. She let it roll around her tongue. "_Shi-onn_. _Shionn_."

"_Come now_," Sazuki repeated, cutting across the blue-haired girl, who was having far too much fun amusing herself with their strange names ("Mat-to", "Shionn", "Buri… Buriji…" She gave up on the third name). Sazuki paused for a second, thinking about what she wanted to convey. "_We are… we are…" _The word suddenly sprang to mind and she beamed. "_Late_!"

The Americans nodded and made noises of understanding, and they herded them off up the corridor.

"Well," Sachi said, with a broad grin. "It looks like the exchange students are finally here."

* * *

**A/N: Want to know more about the Americans? Go read _Tales from the Mew Institute_. Yepp, there it is, Zeph. I just went there.**

**Yeah, guys, I know. For such a long chapter, not much really happens. Well, not much in my opinion. But then, that's because I've been writing fics like SfS lately, in which everything happens fast and comes at you even faster. **

**Side note for sakuuya: Jebus Cripes (as Zeph would say), you have NO IDEA how hard it was trying to make this chapter over ten pages long! D: I never thought I'd see the day where I'd struggle to write twenty-page chapters again, but here it is T-T**

**So, once again, a very Happy Birthday to ZephyrFiction. You may take pride in the knowledge that this story **_**literally **_**only just survived because of you :3**

**That's all for today, readers.**

**ACTUALLY, _no_, it ISN'T! Remember at the end of the last chapter, when I asked y'all to take a guess as to what the three significant things the chapter centred on were? **

**Well, I have some answers for you:**

**1) Nobody got all three correct XD  
2) ****Momoka**** the Cyniclon was inspired by ****Alice Cullen**** (Yupp. I like Twilight).  
3) ****The Store Room**** was directly inspired by the ****Room of Requirement****, from J.K. Rowling's **_**Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.**_**  
4) ****The chapter as a whole**** was inspired by **_**Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince**__**, **_**the movie version of which had just been released before I wrote the chapter. I'd seen it only a few days before. I was seriously in the HP zone XD**

**So there you have it. The answers to those until-now unanswered questions! XD**

**That really is all for today, readers. **

**If you feel inclined, be so kind as to review? Reviews are love, and this story thrives on love.**

**Until the next update,**

**Love Cherrie xx**


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